The 3rdAfricanYouth Nuclear Summit to strengthen networks among the professionals in nuclear science, technology and opening up future opportunities for the youth is currently ongoing in Accra.
The five-day summit which is held under the theme “the impact of nuclear science and technology applications on economic recovery in Africa post COVID-19 pandemic,” has participants drawn from the African continent.
It also seeks to provide a platform for leading scientists and researchers in nuclear science and technology applications to share their expertise and transfer to the younger generation.
The Director General of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Prof. Benjamin Jabez Botwe Nyarko, said nuclear energy application was a controversial subject with regard to how it was perceived by most people.
He said though controversial, it was important to acknowledge the benefits of nuclear energy as well as identify the peaceful and non-peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
The atomic energy commission boss saidthe challenge was that both uses had been combined, explaining that the non-peaceful use had to do with nuclear weapons, while the peaceful uses had to do with its application in health, electricity and agriculture.
According to Prof. Nyarko in the health sector, nuclear energy was used in treating cancer while in agriculture it was used for preservation and increasing the shelf life of food items.
He said his outfit was working on the nuclear energyfor electricity generation also known as the nuclear power plant to add to the energy mix to help the country industrialise.
Prof. Nyarko said as the country intended to go into aluminum bauxite, mining of iron and other activities that use heavy base load energy, nuclear energy could be used for that purpose.
The Director General of GAEC said it was therefore the responsibility of the youth to demystify the negative notion about nuclear energy, saying that “we want the youth to carry this message to get the people to understand that these are not monsters but rather things that can be used to benefit the society and should not add the nuclear weapon to peaceful uses of nuclear energy.”
The Executive Director at Ghana Young Generation in Nuclear (GhYGN), Emmanuel Maurice Arthur, said nuclear energy had the solution to most of the challenges that came along with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
He indicated that if Ghana could build its nuclear energy, it would be able to solve most of its unemployment challenges.
Mr Arthur said the renewable and solar energy could not stand on its own, adding that there was the need for a base load which could sustain the country when it came to the use of electricity.
Touching on the programme, he said it was to see how best to push the peaceful use of nuclear energy to policy makers, share opportunities and encourage youth participation in nuclear-related research, innovation and skills development programmes.
At the end of the programme Mr Arthur said the summit would come out with proposals to push the governments to incorporate nuclear energy into the energy mix.
BY JEMIMA ESINAM KUATSINU
