Over 300 artisans and craftsmen in the construction industry have received hands-on training on how to use modern technologies to harness their skills and improve their abilities in the construction business.

The programme was spearheaded by CIMAF Ghana in partnership with Kumasi Technical University’s Institute of Research, Innovations and Development (IRID) to provide knowledge and skills to the 300 artisans within the informal sector through the TVET formal skills acquisition program

Speaking at the launch of the programme, Marketing Manager for CIMAF Ghana Patricia Ansong explained the five-day training is part of a year-long plan to train over 1,200 artisans across the country.

She further added that “the move is geared towards equipping cement users especially end users of our products (CIMAF cement) the new technologies in the building and construction industry for effective and efficient furnishing in the line of work so this is why CIMAF Ghana is training these artisans because mostly they hardly receive these kind of training since most of them are in the informal sector so we believe this will be a relief to most of the beneficiaries”.

Director of Institute of Research, Innovations and Development at KsTU Dr Smart Sarpong, while addressing the media, encouraged the various companies to come forward for more of such collaborations as CIMAF has started.

He added that “these artisans are the core people who build our houses and construct most of our projects so if we don’t equip them and train them to enhance their abilities they may end up rusty and who knows the next time they may be building with the wrong proportion of materials and the rest of the story is disaster so I will encourage giants in the building and construction sector to follow suit and train their end users the skills to effectively utilize their products”.

During the launch of the programme to kick start the five-day training, Director of International Affairs and Institutional Linkages Professor Gabriel Dwomoh explained that the construction industry is one of the direct beneficiaries of the University’s products but the University rarely gets such partnerships.

He expressed gratitude to the CIMAF Group and admonished the beneficiaries to take advantage of the opportunity given them to ensure the skills they are about to acquire will not be in vain.