Zoil trains 109 life guards

*To save lives on Volta Lake

About 109 life guards who underwent a two-week extensive training to beef up operations on the Volta Lake to help safeguard lives and property of Ghanaians who conduct daily business on and around the lake, passed out on friday.

The training, which was a collaboration between Zoil Services Limited for its Volta Lake Transport Enhancement Programme (VLTEP) and the Ghana Navy, was carried out at the Eastern Naval Base in Tema.

The training was the third to be conducted since the launch of the programme in 2009 and it was meant to increase the number of lifeguards who are currently operating at the various landing and boarding sites along the lake.

The Volta Lake Transport Enhancement Project is an initiative launched by Zoil Services Limited in 2009 in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport with the rationale of finding effective solutions to the frequent boat disasters that occur on the Volta Lake.

The project involves the training and positioning of lifeguards at strategic points along the Volta Lake to ensure safe practices and rapid rescue response to save lives and property as well as the distribution of life jackets to boat users.

Addressing the gathering at the ceremony yesterday in Tema, the deputy Minister for Transport, Mrs. Dzifa Attivor, charged the newly trained life guards to execute their duties with passion and unwavering commitment so that the investment that has gone into their training will not be in vain.

Mrs. Attivor minced no words when she entreated boat operators to practice the training they have received so that they together with the Zoil Life Guards would help protect the life of passengers on the Volta Lake.

She pointed out that an observation was made by the supervisors of the project that there was little cooperation between the life guards and the boat operators with regard to the enforcement of rules on the lake.

Mrs. Attivor urged boat operators to join hands with the Zoil Life Guards to help save precious lives on the lake.

Earlier in his welcoming address, the National Coordinator of Zoil Service Limited, Mrs. Rhoda Donkor, indicated that the rationale for training more lifeguards is to beef up the services of those that are already in the system so that they could cover more areas and ensure that people are adhering strictly to the standards and rules laid down for travelling on the lake.

“We want to have presence at all major landing and boarding sites along the Volta Lake so that monitoring and rescue operations can be done to the expectation hence the need to train more lifeguards,” she added.

Mrs. Donkor mentioned the positive strides the project has brought since its inception.

“We are trying very hard to make accidents on the lake a thing of the past by injecting a lot of resources into the project.

“This has contributed immensely to the several successful rescue operations that our guards have undertaken in places,” Mrs. Donkor explained.

Speaking about the training, the Coordinator and main Instructor, Chief Petty Officer Aguze Franklin, was optimistic that the objective of the two-week exercise will be attained looking at the enthusiasm and devotion being exhibited by the trainees.

“Although we had a few challenges initially such as language barrier, we have been able to overcome that and the training is proceeding smoothly,” Chief Aguze affirmed.