By Abdou Mbye
The Basic and Secondary Education Ministry (MoBSE) in partnership with MRC Holland Foundation and Gambia Aid Foundation (GAF) on Tuesday, 15 November 2022 inaugurated a new model technical school Joe Koel Technical School at Brikama Jamisa. The school was set up as part of the education value chain network that is purely technical and model TVET school for the Basic Education Ministry.
MoBSE is striving to align its programmes with global educational realities by being transformational and responsive to the foreseeable phenomenal challenges the world is faced with, and by grooming talented and technically-oriented citizens that would meaningfully support the socioeconomic development of the country.
The newly built school has been named after a 92-year-old Netherland philanthropist and founder of Gambia Aid Foundation (GAF), Joe Koel. He has been supporting the country for twenty years in various areas like health and education. He funded the school through MRC Holland in the partnership with Government with the aim to equip students on several prerequisite skills; including wood work, metalwork, electrical and solar installation, home science, construction, mechanic, among others.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Minister of Basic and Secondary Education, Claudiana A. Cole hailed the sponsors for the magnificent gesture and expressed optimism that the school will serve as another milestone in the Ministry’s drive to promote TVET friendly schools and to build talents in youths at a tender age.
“The whole world is talking about TVET and The Gambia cannot be left behind in this great endeavor. We want to educate people so that they can have the confidence, competence, knowledge, and skills to be able to empower themselves,” Minister Cole expounded. She urged the community to take great care of the facility and for the students to be enrolled to make good use of the school.
The Director of Regional Education Directorate two, Mr Lamin Fatajo posited that technical education is vital in the human resource development of any nation as it enables the country to create the needed skills and manpower to enhance industrial development.
He remarked: “This is what our country needs and the need to catch them young enables us to nurture and develop those talents to serve as pivotal needs of the skill set of this country. This school is earmarked for that purpose and we have seen the use of high technology in all sectors globally. Therefore, formalising technical education will provoke the minds of the learners and create self-employment”. The MRC Holland country coordinator, Madam Henriette Brummer Sonko expressed delight for inaugurating such a sample Technical school and
thanked the partnership of GAF.
The Principal of Joe Koel Technical School, Mr Ousman Bojang stated: “As we all know the job market has been saturated and is difficult for people with only academic qualifications to have jobs”.
Other speakers were Mr Johan Scholte, representing the Gambia Aid Foundation (GAF) and Joe Koel; Mr Janneh S Darboe , the Cluster Monitor for Jamisa Cluster.
