Teach children local dialect

Members of the congregation in traditional wear

 A wife of the Bishop of the Northern Accra Diocese of the Methodist Church Ghana, Mrs Lucia Eyison has admonished African parents to teach their children the local dialect to appreciate their culture rather than the English language.

According to her, teaching the child with the English language was not wrong but doing that at the detriment of the mother tongue deprives the child of his/her cultural values.

Mrs Eyison disclosed this in an inter­view with The Spectator at the North­ern Accra Diocese of the Methodist Church Ghana’s Indigenous Ghanaian Day celebration held in Accra, last Sunday.

The day formed part of the church’s fifth anniversary celebration and aimed at promoting Ghanaian culture.

The event attracted 18 circuits in the Dioceses, with members dressed in traditional outfits to represent their various tribes and cultures across the country.

It was a blend of regular service pro­tocols of worship, hymns and praises, along with traditional cultural tunes played with local instruments.

The church complemented the occa­sion with a sellout of culinary lessons on some traditional Ghanaian delica­cies such as ampesi, akple, banku, ken­key, ofam, kpokpoi, fufu, aprapransa, yakayakae, kokonte, waakye and tuo-zaafi at the St John’s Methodist Society, Tantra Hill.

Local beverages such as sobolo, asaa­na, millet drink were also on display.

Mrs Eyison said learning to speak in the mother tongue was very import­ant for a child’s overall development, saying being fluent in the mother tongue benefits the child by connecting him/her to the culture, ensure better cognitive development and aid in the learning of other languages.

“Language is a unique identity to every ethnic group which makes it the most important aspect of communi­cation to all humans. We should all encourage these young ones to learn, understand and speak their mother tongue so that they can appreciate their culture and project it to the world,” she added.

The Circuit Women’s Fellowship Secretary, Mrs Gloria Asabea whose group represented the Eastern Region said the significance of the event was to educate the youth about Ghanaian culture through their dressing, food and language.

 By Vivian Arthur