The Energy Minister, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh says Ghana is committed to building partnerships that will ensure that Ghanaians are equipped with the relevant skills to be able to participate in the upstream oil and gas industry.

Dr Opoku Prempeh made this assertion when he led a delegation comprising of officials from the Ministry of Energy and the Petroleum Commission to the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) in Edmonton, Canada.

The visit, in furtherance of the government’s commitment to the Accelerated Oil and Gas Capacity Programme (AOGC), enabled the Minister to assess at first-hand, the training capacity of the Institute, a leading name in North America.

The minister recalled his particular interest in technical education as Ghana’s immediate past Minister of Education and how under his watch, he initiated legal processes in parliament to delink technical, vocational and service training from the Ghana Education Service (GES) to stand-alone for the purpose of emphasis.

He said the AOGC programme by the NPP government is a strategic vehicle to ensure that Ghanaians are equipped with the relevant skills to be able to participate in the upstream oil and gas industry.

“Local Content and Local Participation in Ghana’s upstream industry is an article of faith for me and therefore going round and seeing the facilities here at NAIT is indicative that you can support our country achieve our potential,” he said.

He continued “on my assumption of office as Minister, I have been made aware of your training and certification of five Ghanaians and the upcoming training of nine instructors. Ghana will leave no stone unturned, and we ask you to support us with the best.”

On her part, Laura Jo Gaunta, President of NAIT expressed delight at seeing the Ghanaian delegation and reiterated the school’s commitment to supporting the industry with the best. “We are happy to see you, Mr Minister. For us, our pleasure is to see our products contributing immensely to industry and we remain committed to this” she said

On a guided tour of NAIT’s state-of-the-art laboratories, Dr Opoku Prempeh expressed satisfaction with the preparedness of the Institute for industry and urged them to do more.

The Ghanaian delegation included the chief director at the Ministry, Lawrence Apaalse, CEO of the Petroleum Commission, Egbert Faibille Jnr., executive director for COTVET, Dr Frederick Kyei as well as other officials from the Petroleum Commission.