Ghana in the next few months will have its own indigenous paragliding pilots as the Ministry of Tourism makes frantic efforts to establish a pilot training school at Kwahu in the Eastern Region.

In an interview with Citi News at the grand opening of this year’s Kwahu Easter Paragliding Festival, the Minister of Tourism Arts and Culture, Catherine Afeku, said the training school will help nurture prospective pilots.

“We are in talks to establish the pilot training school to help nurture indigenous people, you know there are a lot of Ghanaians interested in learning so we have spoken to the pilots from USA who have agreed to train our local people. Three of the pilots have their own schools in USA so it won’t be difficult.”

Madame Afeku added that, the youth who will go through the training will get jobs as well, adding that “our youth who will have the chance to be trained in this program will also be employed and this will reduce the unemployment rate in the country. We turn to have a lot of foreign nationals who visit the country day in day out, and not only during Easter, so this will also boost the tourism sector and bring foreign exchange”.

She added that, the initiative will be a legacy the Akufo-Addo government wants to leave behind.

“The establishment of the school will be a thing Ghanaians especially people of Kwahu will forever be grateful for and this will be one of President Nana Addo’s legacies,” she said.

On his part, the Eastern Regional Minister, Eric Kwakye Darfour, who was also at the opening ceremony. shared his excitement with Citi News.

He said “the people of Kwahu will always welcome people from all shades of life to come and experience how Easter is well celebrated in the world, Kwahu is Easter and Easter is Kwahu, you cannot enjoy the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus without coming to Kwahu.”

The Director of Ghana AIDS Commission in the Eastern Region, Madame Golda Asante, in an interview with Citi News also encouraged patrons to take advantage of the celebration and know their status.

She said “we are having a free Aids screening and counselling for everyone here in Kwahu, so we are urging everybody here to cease this opportunity to know his or her status before they leave here. We always advice that when you know your status you then take precautionary measures to live.”

She also advised the youth to abstain from unplanned sexual activities, “my advice to youth is that they should try and abstain from any sexual act and stick to their books, but they should also be guided to use the condom to avoid contracting infections and pregnancy.”