Tarkwa: Safety Campaign Ghana (SCG) has held the closing ceremony for its 2025 Mentorship Programme at the Gold Fields A’koon Club House in Tarkwa, with a call on young professionals to champion safety leadership in their workplaces and communities.
According to Ghana News Agency, the event, themed ‘Raising Safety Champions; From Mentorship to Impact,’ marked the culmination of a five-month structured mentorship journey. Organisers noted that the programme transformed emerging professionals into leaders capable of driving lasting change. Mr. Emmanuel Damoah Nyarkoh, Executive Director of SCG, highlighted the theme’s reflection of the organisation’s vision to move mentees beyond theoretical knowledge to practical safety leadership.
Mr. Damoah Nyarkoh stated, ‘True mentorship must produce measurable impact. Over the past five months, we have witnessed mentees grow into ambassadors of safer practices who are ready to influence culture, policy, and behaviour wherever they go.’ The 2025 cohort saw 287 applications nationwide, with 10 outstanding young professionals selected after rigorous aptitude tests and two rounds of interviews.
These mentees were paired with seasoned mentors from sectors such as mining, construction, oil and gas, logistics, healthcare, and academia. The mentorship programme featured 10 themed sessions covering leadership, behaviour-based safety, risk management, professional ethics, and personal branding. It also included community outreach and workplace projects led by mentees, as well as scholarship and internship opportunities for top performers.
Mr. Damoah Nyarkoh noted the symbolic choice of Tarkwa for the closing ceremony, describing the mining town as the ‘heartbeat of Ghana’s extractive sector where safety excellence is critical.’ He commended Gold Fields Ghana for its partnership and support in promoting youth capacity building and community development. Mentors who volunteered their expertise expressed inspiration from SCG’s vision of raising ethical and competent safety leaders, noting the transformation of mentees into confident, proactive problem-solvers.
Some mentees shared experiences of how the programme reshaped their professional approach. One participant initiated a personal protective equipment (PPE) awareness campaign at her workplace and led a child safety talk in her community. Stakeholders at the ceremony, including industry representatives such as Mr. Samuel Koffie, Senior Manager, Health, Safety and Environment, AngloGold Ashanti, Iduapriem Mine, and Mr. Prince Afful Obeng, Health and Safety Manager, Asante Gold Chirano Ltd., described the initiative as a strategic investment in Ghana’s future, emphasising that youth empowerment and safety excellence must go hand in hand.
Looking ahead, SCG announced plans to sustain the mentorship journey through an alumni network, quarterly capacity-building sessions, corporate partnerships, and the creation of a digital mentorship platform. Mr. Damoah expressed a five-year vision for SCG to become Ghana’s leading mentorship and advocacy hub for occupational safety, aiming to train at least 200 Safety Champions by 2030. He urged young professionals to embrace mentorship and take up the mantle of safety leadership, emphasising that the ceremony was not just a graduation but a call to action for building a safer Ghana.
The mentees who won scholarships were Isabella Marteko Martey, ISO Auditor; David Benjamin Appiah, NEBOSH IGC; and Prosper Agbenyo, IOSH Managing Safely.