The Minister of Communications, Mr Haruna Iddrisu has stressed the importance of surveyors at this moment of the country’s development when it has struck oil in commercial quantities. He has therefore called on the Ghana School of Surveying and Mapping (GSSM) to train modern surveyors to become the forerunners in support of the oil industry. Delivering the keynote address at the celebration of the School’s SRC Week in Accra on Thursday, he noted that an essential requirement for national development is accurate information for spatial, economic and social development. “In this era of emerging oil industry, the role of surveyors cannot be over emphasized. For instance accurate mapping of the sea bed and Geographical Information System (GIS) are the basic requirements needed to monitor and take stock of the number of oil vessels (ships) that enter in and out the oil fields,” Mr Iddrisu said. “The data generated would enable Government revenue agencies to have an idea of the proceeds that could accrue to Government. In this direction, the use of Information and Communication Technology is almost indispensable.” The theme for the celebration is; “The Role of Surveyors in the Emerging Oil Industry”. Mr Iddrisu said since the discovery, critical issues such as poverty reduction, developing an appropriate national oil revenue fund, developing the appropriate social and physical infrastructure, efficient utility services, reliable health services , security of land tenure, among others were being discussed. In this regard, he said, it required the collective effort of all stakeholders with leadership by Government to contribute meaningfully to the debates. Mr. Iddrisu said: “As global trends are changing, technology is becoming a plug-and-play commoditized and we need high-priced surveyors to turn the key on.” “In this connection, the development of human resources to meet these challenges of the 21st century and ensure that Ghana competes on the global market is absolutely necessary. “Knowledge in the use of computers beyond basics: the development of software programmes, and knowledge in assembling should be an integral part of your academic training.” Mr. Iddrisu urged them to use ICT as being done in the ortho-photomapping and remote sensing (satellite survey) as this would assist in aerial survey monitoring of the oil fields. He pledged Government’s commitment to facilitating policy development aimed at promoting ICT education and development programmes that would ensure that the youth and graduates that entered the labour market in the country were equipped with the necessary Information Technology skills to become more competitive. Mr. Iddrisu challenged the management and staff of Ghana School of Surveying and Mapping to set a target for the years ahead to increase its activities in research and development and lead the crusade in the provision of training in ICT education of its students. He said in so doing, it would be useful for the School to develop relations with the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence as well as the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology which have established programmes in engineering and informatics both at certificate and degree levels. Mr Harunna said Government had always recognized the importance that academia had in shaping the Information and Communications Technology services of today and pledged its commitment to strengthen the relationship it had with universities and training institutions. Source: GNA