Students of the University of Mines and Technology (U-MAT), Tarkwa, are to be schooled on the skills set needed to get sustainable jobs in the mining industry.

Swedish industrial giant, Sandvik Mining Ghana Limited, will be unveiling the job opportunities available in the company to the students at a programme this weekend, dubbed: ‘Sandvik Goes to School’ in the university’s auditorium.

Managers of the company say at a time that mining companies are cutting down the number of their employees, dictated by poor gold prices on the world market, it is absolutely necessary to educate the students on the critical skills needed to get a job.

Sales Area Manager and Managing Director for West Africa of the company, Mr. Nuhu Salifu, who has over 20 years working experience in the mining sector in Ghana, is expected to lead the students to discuss the key issue of how to get and retain a job in today’s volatile and competitive mining environment.

He said Sandvik will be making a donation to the school which has been at the forefront of producing engineering professionals and experts for the mining sector.

The ‘Sandvik Goes to School’ programme is also to provide the platform for the students to interact with some of the world-class engineers that the company boasts.

The Vice-Chancellor of U-MAT, Prof. Jerry Samuel Yaw Kuma will deliver the key note address which is expected to dwell on the mandate of the university and the problems confronting it.

Sandvik Mining is reputed as a leading global supplier of equipment and tools, service and technical solutions for the mining industry.

Two years ago the company held a similar programme at Pakyi No. 1 DA Junior High School, in the Ashanti Region.

At that programme, Mr. Salifu said since 2005, Sandvik Mining has “spent $592,000 on the training of technicians at the University of Mines and Technology to help provide the relevant skills for the mining industry and contributed $62,000 to rehabilitate part of the dormitory block of the Tarkwa Midwifery Training School, through the Goldfields Ghana Sustainable Development Fund.”