From Onlookers to Operators: 135 Youth Graduate as Heavy-Duty Equipment Operators

For years, Sylvester Tano Thompson watched heavy machinery move through his hometown of Adausena the way most young people in mining communities do — from a distance. That distance has now closed significantly.

Thompson is one of 135 young people from Zijin Golden Ridge Limited's mining host communities who graduated as certified heavy-duty equipment operators at a ceremony held at the Global Institute of Mines and Safety (GIMS) in Afrisipa in the Ahafo Region of Ghana.

Trained to operate dump trucks, excavators, and dozers, the graduates completed a three-month programme sponsored by the Zijin Akyem Development Foundation (ZADeF) and funded by Zijin Golden Ridge Limited (ZGRL), making it one of the Foundation's largest youth investment programmes to date.

Among them, Thompson stood out. He was named the programme's Most Disciplined Trainee. "It wasn't easy, but our instructors were patient and supportive throughout the training," Thompson said. "I thank ZADeF and Zijin Golden Ridge Limited for believing in us and making my dream come true. Receiving this award encourages me to continue working hard and maintain the discipline I have learned."

His story reflects a shift taking place across Zijin's mine host communities — young people who once watched machinery from the roadside have spent the past three months learning to operate it themselves.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony, ZADeF Project Coordinator Seth Nuamah stressed that the programme was part of a broader push to give young people in these communities a genuine foothold in skilled trades. "Handiwork is very important," Nuamah said. "We want to build the capacity of our youth so they can compete for jobs in mining companies, road construction firms, building companies, and many other industries. These skills will open doors for them wherever opportunities exist."

GIMS Chief Executive Officer Larry Gabriel Yennugu urged graduates to broaden their ambitions and warned against illegal mining as an alternative path. "This training is not for galamsey. It is for legal work," Yennugu told them. "Don't limit yourselves to mining companies alone. Your skills are needed in many industries, and I am confident that any company will be fortunate to employ professionals with the knowledge and discipline you have acquired."

The cohort is not the last. Forty more trainees are currently completing the same programme at PBEV, with graduation expected in August 2026. Once that group finishes, ZADeF's investment in heavy-duty equipment training will have reached 175 young people from its host communities — 137 men and 38 women — each holding a certified trade built to outlast any single job or employer.

The Foundation, funded through a share of Zijin's gold sales and profits, measures its return not only in tonnes moved or machines operated, but in graduates like Thompson: standing in his home community of Adausena, no longer watching from the roadside, but equipped with a trade and a clearer sense of what comes next.