The forecourt of the Dr Hilla Limann Technical University buzzed with more than student energy on Monday. It buzzed with ambition.

Welding sparks, pastry samples, and rows of designer cloth and smocks made by students turned the 2026 Open Day Exhibition and Mini Trade Fair into something bigger than a school event: a statement that technical education in Ghana is moving from the margins to the centre of job creation.

Three voices shaped that statement: the Upper West Minister, Charles Lwanga Puozuing, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Hamidatu Dramani and the Director of TVET, Dr Martin Donani, each speaking to a different piece of the same puzzle: how to make TVET work for Ghana’s youth.

Upper West Regional Minister, Charles Lwanga Puozuing, did not mince words. Addressing traditional rulers, students, and parents, he framed the fair as proof of what happens when theory meets practice. “Today marks the sign of all the activities that we do theoretically that are now being exhibited in practical terms,” he said.

He tied it directly to government policy, noting that President John Dramani Mahama has made TVET a priority for youth job creation. Then he turned to the students themselves with a challenge: “Technical education is the way to go. It makes you employable. You are innovative, and you can create your entrepreneurship skills, leading to you being an employer instead of an employee.”

His call was simple: enrol, learn, and build. On behalf of the government and the people of the Upper West Region, he declared the 2026 Exhibition and Trade Fair officially open.

For Prof. Hamidatu Dramani, the Vice Chancellor, the fair was about pride but also purpose. “Technical and Vocational Education and Training is not just about learning a trade. It is about building human capital that drives industrialisation, creates jobs, and transforms lives,” she told the gathering.

This year’s theme, TVET: A Tool for National Development through Industrialisation and Entrepreneurship, captures the university’s direction, she said. Nations grow strong by investing in skilled people, and Ghana can do the same. DHLTU’s commitment, she added, is to graduate students who “think critically, work with their hands, solve practical problems, and create opportunities for themselves and others.” Not just certificates, but confidence and competence to start businesses and support industries.

Prof. Dramani also celebrated a recent win: in May 2026, DHLTU researchers took the Best Research Paper Award at the Applied Research Conference for Technical Universities in Ghana. For her, that award proves the university’s growing reputation as a centre of innovation where knowledge isn’t just generated, but applied to real-world problems.

If the Minister set the vision and the VC defined the mission, Mr Martin Donani, Director of TVET, explained the mechanics. The Open Day, he said, exists to showcase DHLTU’s expertise, innovations, and inventions – and to speak directly to prospective students and parents.

“This is because we want you to understand that we have you at heart, we have your interest at heart,” he said.

“Most of the items exhibited by DHLTU students are also available for sale. We may not have the right quantities on hand, but you can place an order, and the items will be arranged and delivered to you or picked up."

The three messages form a clear arc. The government is backing TVET. DHLTU is producing graduates who can think, make, and sell. And the university is opening its doors literally to the community to test, buy, and partner. As guests moved through the booths on Monday, the point was hard to miss: at Dr Hilla Limann Technical University, the classroom is no longer separate from the marketplace. For Ghana’s youth, that shift could mean the difference between waiting for a job and creating one.