One hundred and twenty-nine Master Craftsmen in tailoring and dressmaking have completed a three month orientation course in modern tailoring and dressmaking techniques, management practices and simple records keeping skills. The course organized by the Ghana National Tailors and Dressmakers Association was to improve and develop the technical and managerial skills of the Master Craftsmen of the Association. At a graduation ceremony in Kumasi at the weekend, Mr Osei Asibey Bonsu, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Association said the course has also seen 60 other Master Craftsmen graduating from the Obuasi district this year. He observed that the programme demanded a lot of sacrifice from both the executives and members of the Association, so that the requisite skills and techniques would be imparted to members in the profession. Mr Bonsu said with the second phase completed, the Association would continue to organize more orientation course to enable all members acquire the requisite professional skills training in modern tailoring and dress making. Mr Asamoah Duodu, Acting Director of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training of the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports commended the graduates for their efforts and urged them to be proactive, stressing however that, the profession has a future. He urged the members to identify themselves with all the activities and programmes of the Association and offer quality service and be truthful, so that they would win the confidence of their customers. Madam Alice Botchway, Ashanti Regional Director of the National Council on Women and Development (NCWD) urged the graduates to offer the best of training techniques to their apprentices. She called on them to be sincere, honest and render good services to their clients, and stressed the need for them to cultivate good habits of savings, so that they would be able to plough back their profits to expand their business. Mr Ebenezer Yiadom Boakye, former Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Association, who presided asked the graduates to be committed and display a high level of professionalism in their work. He said there is dignity in the profession and as such they needed to be proud with the work at all levels as experts who clothe people, “without you people can not be as they are, no matter their social status”. Mr Joe Akomeah Antwi, the Regional Organizer of the Association advised members to endeavour to honour their tax obligations to enable the government raise funds for development projects. Nana Opoku Agyeman, Chief of Asenemaso near Kumasi who deputized for the Bantamahene, urged the graduates to be committed to the welfare and development of their apprentices and lead good lives worthy of emulation. Source:GNA