Bolgatanga Technical Institute reopens

Academic work at the Bolgatanga Technical Institute (BOTECH) in the Upper East Region has resumed.

The school was closed down on May 30, 2015, following student riot after a first-year student, Castro Ayine, fell from a three-storey boys’ dormitory and fractured his leg.

The Principal of BOTECH, Mr Thomas Amare, told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the school was reopened on July 6, 2015 after an investigation committee set up by the school's board of directors recommended that it be reopened.

He intimated that to forestall the recurrence of such incidents, the school authorities had cautioned the students against raising false alarms which had the tendency of causing similar disasters in the future.

Issues resolved

Mr Amare added that the old guard rails at the boys' dormitory had been replaced with new ones. That was because during the rioting some of the students blamed the incident on the deplorable condition of the boys' dormitory and demanded for its immediate renovation.

Mr Amare also indicated that the victim, Ayine, reported to school after it was reopened, saying, "His condition is now better than it was after the incident."

New projects

The Principal revealed that the African Development Bank (AfDB), in collaboration with the Council for Technical Vocational Education and Training (COTVET), had earmarked a number of projects for the school this year.

These are the renovation of the boys’ dormitory, the dining and assembly halls. A new boys' dormitory, two new workshops for the creative arts, welding and fabrication technology would also be provided.

Mr Amare said that a wall and a teachers' flat would also be constructed.

According to him, the intervention was part of measures by the two bodies to refurbish one technical institute in each of the 10 regions of Ghana.

Appeal

The Principal, therefore, appealed to the AfDB and the COTVET to ensure the early start of the projects, particularly as the boys' dormitory was currently congested.

The Bolgatanga Technical Institute was established in 1985 as a co-educational institution. It currently has a student population of about 1,600.