The Japan Motors Trading Company Limited, a leading automobile company, has donated the first Nissan pick-up vehicle assembled in Ghana to the Mechanical Engineering Department of the College of Engineering.
Receiving the vehicle on behalf of the University and the College, Professor (Mrs.) Rita Akosua Dickson, Vice-Chancellor of KNUST commended Japan Motors for the gesture and most especially for realising the dream of localising the assembling of Nissan vehicles. The Vice Chancellor pledged the commitment of KNUST to collaborate and partner with key industrial players such as Japan Motors to equip students with relevant skills that will make them employable.
The Provost, College of Engineering, KNUST, Professor Mark Adom-Asamoah on his part, noted that the College has for decades been at the forefront of developing the required manpower needs in various engineering disciplines for the development of Ghana and other African nations.
He said that the College’s strategic plan (2016-2025) envisaged prospects in forging a win-win partnership with key stakeholders such as Japan Motors and hoped the donation will deepen the collaboration particularly with the Automobile Engineering and Mechanical Engineering programmes.
Presenting the keys of the new pickup vehicle to the Vice chancellor, the Exective Director of Japan Motors, Mr. Nouhad Kalmoni was optimistic that the development of the new automobile plant in Ghana would provide the opportunity for students in the country who pursue Engineering and Automobile courses to develop their skills adequately whenever they come for internship programs at the Japan Motors. He said the donation of the first locally assembled Nissan pickup to the College of Engineering was appropriate since the College is one of the best in the sub-region that produces the targeted human resources needed for the automobile industry.
Mr. Kalmoni observed an already existing partnership between Japan Motors and KNUST. Japan Motors gets a lot of students from the College of Engineering for their National Service. As such, he was hopeful that with the new development in the automobile industry, most of the products of the College would one day take key leadership positions in JMTC’s new local Nissan assembling Plant.
On his part, Mr. Abdul-Somad Alhassan Musah, Assistant MD JMTC said the company’s interest is to develop the automobile industry and "as partners appointed by Nissan to assemble the Nissan vehicles locally, there would be there need for adequate human resources for the plant." According to Mr. Alhassan, KNUST is the Pioneer Engineering University in Ghana that produces a lot of the human resources, hence, the need to partner KNUST to drive the course. He expressed the need for KNUST to tailor its academic programmes and courses towards the new development in Ghana’s automobile industry to help develop the industry.
Nissan established a vehicle assembly plant in Ghana with its long-time partner, Japan Motors Trading Company Limited appointed as its local partner in the all-new vehicle assembly facility in Accra, Ghana.