The purpose of our Auto Mechanics program is to bring highly needed skills training in auto mechanics to Okurase.
The Concern
Ghana’s roads can be somewhat challenging. Some highways are smooth and easy to traverse. Other roads are full of potholes and some may not be paved. The latter type of roads produces heavy wear and tear on cars. In rural areas or even small cities, finding a skilled mechanic can be a challenge and cars that break down may be abandoned for days or longer until a solution is found. Also, without trained auto mechanics preventive maintenance is virtually impossible. As a result, cars do not last a long time.
The Auto Mechanics Program
Project OKURASE is preparing to bring auto mechanics training to Okurase as one of the initial tracks of the Nkabom Vocational Training Institute. In June of 2018, Project OKURASE, a high school student, Michelle Norton, and an experienced U.S. auto mechanic, Derek Waycaster, worked to create a budget, identify a tools list, raise funds, and ship a container of tools to Ghana.
In July, Michelle Norton spent three weeks in Okurase with Project OKURASE. While there, they identified the land where the garage will be built, met with auto shop owners to understand local considerations, and worked with a U.S. architect, Chris Meyers, to design a simple garage using locally available materials.
The garage will have a large, covered concrete slab that holds a shipping container which functions as shop storage, two bays, and a connected section that will allow for working under cars using a hole dug in the ground and concrete lifts. In October, Derek Waycaster will go to Okurase to oversee finishing the garage and start the vocational program.
Benefits
With auto mechanics training in Okurase’s future, we expect to become THE “go to” village for all seeking preventive maintenance and repair work. This stands to help the village economically to a great degree, not to mention individuals who will be able to make a living that they could not make before.
Way Forward
We look forward to the opening of the Auto Mechanics track of the Nkabom Vocational Training Institute.
How You Can Help
You can help the Okurase Auto Mechanics Program by:
- donating tools to our Garage
- donating funds for the program
- coming to work in the garage and help train if you are a certified Auto Mechanic.
