The Catholic Youth Organisation (CYO) Technical Vocational Institute at Sovie in the Ho Diocese in Ghana’s Volta Region has marked its 40th anniversary with the honouring of Sr. Cecilia Afari, SMMC who had served as Manager from 2005 to 2012.
The Anniversary held on March 9, 2024 was on the theme: “Technical, Vocational Education Training, The Pivot of National Development”.
As part of the celebration, Sr. Cecilia Afari, SMMC was honoured with a Citation for her leadership role during her tenure and the selfless services she had rendered to the Centre and the Diocese at large to sustain the existence of the dream of the Bishop.
The Citation presented to Sr. Afari in appreciation for her dedicated service said “the vision and mission statement of the Centre were highly observed and put to practice to enable the trainees to acquire the needed skills to help them establish their own enterprise for self-sufficiency during your tenure as a Manager.”
It added that “being a dedicated leader, you also put in bids for contracts on behalf of the school and used the proceeds to assist in the emoluments of some staff members of the Centre.”
Currently, Sr. Afari is the Vicar General of the Sisters of Mary Mother of the Church (SMMC) of Ho Diocese and uses her expertise to support the Congregation in writing projects and related programmes for the betterment of her colleague Sisters.
The CYO Vocational Training Centre was established by the Most Rev. Francis A. K. Lodonu, the then bishop of the Keta-Ho Diocese on the October 10, 1982. The school started with an initial enrollment of 30 boys and 22 girls.
The objectives of establishing the Center was to give holistic training to the youth, to bring vocational training to the doorstep of the youth in order to create employment opportunities for them and to minimise Youth migration to the urban areas in search of non-existent jobs.
It was also established to provide skills in various trades to the youth in the region for a better livelihood, to help trainees to establish their own enterprises and finally, to assist trainees to have further education and training in their trade areas.
In 2012, after a thoughtful consultation with Most Rev. Francis A.K. Lodonu, the Institute was mainstreamed into the Ghana Education Service and upgraded to CYO Technical/Vocational/ Institute.
This enabled government to assist the school with additional infrastructure. The current population of the school stands 1,462. The Institute runs programmes such as Agricultural Mechanical Technology, Architectural Design and Drafting, Automobile Engineering, Beauty and Cosmetology, Building Construction.
Others are Computer Hardware Technology, Electrical engineering, Electronic engineering, Furniture, Fashion and design, Hospitality and Catering, Plumbing and Casting Technology, Welding and Fabrication Technology, and Wood Construction and Technology.
By Sr. Gifty Anastasia Blewu, SMMC
