Selected Engineers from a number of African countries have commended the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Training Centre of the Electricity Company of Ghana in Tema for enabling them to undertake a training session in aspects of power distribution systems in Ghana.
The appreciation was part of a message delivered by a representative of the group at a closing ceremony held at the ECG Training Centre in Tema, where the seven-week training took place.
Wisdom Kwame Aglimah, a Ghanaian and one of the Trainees, on behalf of his colleagues, thanked JICA and ECG for creating an enabling environment for all of them to get the needed work done over the period.
He said, “The skills acquired here would not be kept to ourselves, but would be shared with colleagues in our various companies so we can be more impactful.”
The training was part of deliberate efforts by JICA to support some countries to build sustainable electricity systems to reduce power outages and to provide affordable electricity for all.
To this end, the agency has been supporting the energy sectors in these counties by strengthening electricity transmission and distribution networks, promoting introduction of renewable energy, as well as energy efficiency, developing human resources and strengthening human networks in the energy sector.
Ms Suzuki Momoko, Chief Representative for JICA, Ghana Office, who graced the closing ceremony, indicated that the seven-week training programme targeted technicians in maintenance of electrical equipment and engineers in the distribution, planning, design, system protection and control.
He emphasising that “we believe capacity building of technicians and engineers are indispensable as they are the technicians and the engineers who are maintaining the network and ensuring that electricity is distributed as planned.”
She admonished the trainees to share and be impactful with the knowledge gained, adding “I hope that what you have learned here will contribute to your country’s sustainable electricity system.”
She expressed the hope that the training programme would further enhance collaboration among the participating countries and provide a platform for continuous sharing of experiences.
The Director of the ECG Training Centre, Ing Godfred Mensah, gave an overview of the subjects the training covered.
He also called for continued bilateral partnership between Ghana and Japan and between ECG and JICA.
The electrical engineering training for African countries was the second session to be held since its inception last year.
This year’s edition, which is an expansion of the first session, which was for only the West African zone, saw trainees from nine African countries – Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana (NEDCo), Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda.
