News
Make ‘Education for All’ a reality …stakeholders urged
• Mrs. Mina Tweneboah-Kodua (inset) delivering her speech
Stakeholders like the central government, the Ministry of Education, the assemblies, faith-based organisations, chiefs, teachers and parents must be deeply involved in the making of inclusive education a reality in Ghana.
Particularly, they must be deeply involved in ensuring that every child in the country learns the critical foundational skills to guarantee the provision of education for all.
Mr. Douglas Kanlow Baare, chairman of the Conference of Heads of Basic Schools in the Western Region, made the call at the maiden Conference of Headteachers of Basic Schools (COHBS) at the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipality (EKMA) in Takoradi.
The conference was under the theme, “Education for All: The Role of Stakeholders—The COHBS Factor.”
He explained that ‘Education for All’ was an international initiative launched in 1990 to bring the benefits of education to every citizen in every society, and so a broad coalition of national governments, civil society groups, and development partners such as UNESCO and the World Bank Group are committed to achieving six specific education goals.
Mr. Baare said expanding and improving early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children, would ensure that by 2015 all children, particularly girls in difficult circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, would have access to and could complete education, including free compulsory primary education of good quality, among others.
He said in 2000, 189 countries and the development partners adopted the two Education for All (EFA) goals that aligned with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 2 and 3, which referred to universal primary education and gender parity.
Mr. Baare said despite the efforts made by various nations on EFA goals, an estimated 250 million children around the world were unable to read and write even after spending three or more years at school, adding that “in 2012, 58 million children were out of school; half of this number came from conflict affected countries.”
“Education liberates the intellect, unlocks the imagination, and is essential for self-respect, so as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), make your schools enviable,” he told the teachers.
Mr. Baare said education was the key to prosperity and opened a world of opportunities, making it possible for each one to contribute to a progressive, wealthy society that would benefit every human being.
Mrs. Mina Tweneboah-Kodua, chairperson of EKMA COHBS, said because basic school teachers were the primary implementers of basic education in the country, their roles were crucial in the direction in which the nation’s education was being driven by giving the young ones guidance and mentorship, nurturing them to higher hopes, and inspiring them to become relevant to society and resourceful citizens to contribute to the national developmental agenda.
She said COHBS were faced with so many challenges in their operations, which included poor infrastructure, head teachers’ responsibility allowances, the absence of teaching and learning materials, the neglect of the government to include JHS pupils in the School Feeding Programme, security of schools culminating in the theft of schools’ properties, and the undue delay in releasing capitation grants, among others.
Mrs. Tweneboah-Kodua said despite all these short comings, EKMA Basic Schools have been winners of Basic BrainQuiz on Connect FM, winners of GIFEC Computer Awards for Girls in ICT, sponsors of the Directorate in all forms, and winners in the Regional Reading Contest for Primary Schools, to mention just a few.
The Metro Director of Education, Mrs. Sally Nelly Coleman, urged the head teachers to work hard to achieve their goals since they were major stakeholders in the education sector.
She advised them never to break their front but to remain united even in the midst of the many challenges they went through because with unity of purpose they would progress steadily.
Mr. Clement Afrane, Chairman of the Metro COHBS, stated that one of the major challenges was filling out reports, which required information and communication technology (ICT), and that if you were not knowledgeable in ICT, it would be difficult.
He appealed for head teachers to avail themselves of the study of ICT to upgrade themselves.
He said the directorate should try to recruit more males into the head teacher position because the ratio of women to men was too vast to be compared.
The chairman of the conference, EKMA Director of Education, Mrs. Catherine Andoh Biney, told the head teachers to step up and put in more effort to prepare these young ones to become future responsible leaders of Ghana.
From Peter Gbambila, Effiakuma
The Vice Chancellor of the Pentecost University, Apostle Professor Kwabena Agyapong-Kodua, is advocating an intentional conversation about the development and education of the boy child in creating stronger families and societies.
According to him, the boy child must not be ignored in conversations on leadership, education, family stability and national transformation because they are key to national development.
“There is a reason why a boy child must not be denied opportunities like education; he is a future leader. When boys are trained well, society becomes safer and stronger,” he stated.
Apostle Prof. Agyapong-Kodua made the remark at a forum organised by the Church of Pentecost Schools Outreach Ministry in Accra to observe the International Day of the Boy Child observed on May 16.
It was held in collaboration with the Pentecost Men’s Ministry and the Ghana Education Service (GES), and under the theme: ‘Flourish and Thrive: Investing and Unleashing Boys for Strong Families and Communities.’
Leading the discussion, the Pentecost University Vice Chancellor warned that poor mentorship, declining in education, harmful social media influences and emotional neglect have made a lot of young boys vulnerable.
With a lot of the attention switching to the girl child, the boy child, he said was confronted with many challenges including violence, substance abuse, educational decline, emotional neglect and the absence of positive role models.
According to Apostle Prof. Agyapong-Kodua, he noted that boys were turning to social media for direction due to the absence of fathers and mentors to help shape their lives.
“If we are not intentional, social media will mentor our children for us. We are not saying they should not use social media, but they should be guided to access the right information to excel in life,” he stated.
Prof. Agyapong-Kodua urged society to encourage boys to become creators of technology rather than mere consumers.
Contributing, Madam Gifty Asiedu, Director of the Girls’ Education Unit at the GES Headquarters, said the service remained committed to ensuring that no child was left behind, adding that, “supporting the boy child should not come at the expense of progress made in girl-child education.”
“If you focus intentionally on one gender and neglect the other, you create a societal problem,” she underlined.
She said the GES had observed some decline in boys’ retention in school, although the gap between boys and girls was not yet too wide.
“Over the years, attention has been focused on the girl child and we have seen the benefits. However, data now show that the statistics concerning the boy child continue to decline,” she indicated.
She explained that the service was implementing gender-responsive education to ensure that classroom teaching addressed the needs of both boys and girls equally.
Elder Barima Acheampong Sarpong II, Deputy Director of the Pentecost Men’s Ministry and Chief of Asante Asaman in the Ashanti Region, said society needed to critically examine the plight of boys.
“As we celebrate the International Day for the Boy Child, I urge every man to identify one boy child, find out how he is doing and dedicate some time to mentoring him,” he explained.
The programme, attended by educators, church leaders and policymakers, was the second edition following a partnership initiated last year between the Schools Outreach Ministry, the Pentecost Men’s Ministry and the GES.
It sought to improve school enrolment, completion rates and learning outcomes among boys so they could grow into responsible men who would build strong families and communities.
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
Candidates that wrote the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in Ho Municipality are hopeful of obtaining good grades to make everyone especially their parents and the Regional Minister proud.
The candidates said they had so far sat the examination with focus and integrity after a call from Mr James Gunu, Regional Minister to avoid examination malpractice saying, they expected great performance upon release of results.
Mr Gunu, at the start of this year’s BECE delivered the message during a monitoring visit to some centres in the municipality including Ho Kpodzi EP Basic A School, Mawuli School, Mawuko Girls Senior High School (SHS), and Kabore School.
He urged the candidates to rely on hard work and discipline, warning that shortcuts could jeopardise their future.
“Stay focused and give your best in this year’s BECE – your determination and hard work will pay off. Avoid shortcuts and examination malpractice; integrity matters just as much as success,” he said.
The Minister, accompanied by the Ho Municipal Chief Executive, the acting Volta Regional Director of Education, and the Ho Municipal Director of Education, encouraged candidates to view the exam as a foundation for their academic journey and to celebrate responsibly after the final paper, commending parents, guardians, teachers, and officials of the Ghana Education Service for their support in preparing the candidates.
Candidates at some of the centres Ghana News Agency visited, echoed the call for honesty and high standards.
At Kabore School, Ms Francisca Atsu of Sokode Lokoe MA Basic School said, “The Regional Minister was here earlier to speak to us and also to encourage us. We’ve done our best. I assure him that we will make him and our parents proud.”
At Taviefe SHS Centre, Ms Valentina Sakpla of Taviefe R.C Basic School added, “We are expecting good results to make everyone proud and for our own good.”
Mr David Dotse, Supervisor at Kabore School, hosting 11 schools, with a standby ambulance on site to cater for any health emergency, reported smooth proceedings. –GNA
