[ 2014-09-28 ]

Ghana’s Education Producing ‘Quantity,’ Not ‘Quality’
The Northern Regional Director of Education, Paul
Apanga has rubbished Ghana’s education system
and described it as “a quantity producing
education system,” instead of quality.

Mr Apanga, who spoke at a stakeholders’ meeting
held in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region,
called for an integrated and proactive approach by
all stakeholders to tackle the problem.

The occasion was for Action Aid Ghana to launch a
new intervention program dubbed, “Access to
Quality Basic Education and Economic Empowerment
of Women and Youth”.

Recounting some of the challenges facing the
education sector, he cited overcrowding in
classrooms in public schools as clear indications
of failure hence poor performance by pupils and
students in external examinations.

Mr Apanga said when about 80 to 120 pupils were
assigned to a teacher in a classroom, there would
be no quality education and that the downward
trend could have negative implication on the
quality of the human resource base required by the
country to enhance productivity.

Another major problem, he mentioned, was the weak
foundation laid at the pre-school and basic levels
and expressed the hope that AAG’s new
intervention to build new day care centres
kindergartens in the Northern, the Upper East and
the Upper West regions would help address some of
the problems.

He appealed to the stakeholders at the launch
including Municipal, Metropolitan and District
Chief Executives, Regional and District Directors
of Education, District Assembly Coordinators and
Planners, Civil Society Organizations and AAG
partners to take the opportunity provided by AAG
to help arrest the falling standards of education
in the country.

Components in the project which is designed for
the Northern, Upper and Upper West regions would
include the building of Early Childhood Day Care
centres, kindergartens, ultra modern youth centre,
rice mills among others.

The Country Director of AAG, Mr Sumaila
Abdul-Rahman, said the project, which has an
implementing duration of one year, is valued at
€1 illion, and funded by an Italian
philanthropist who does not want his identity
disclosed.

Mr Saani Mohammed Yakubu, Deputy Country Director
of AAG, said Talensi, Nabdam, Pusiga, Bawku West
and Binduri districts are to benefit from the
project.

He said AAG would use the project as a test case
and when successful it would be replicated in
other areas of the country as well as encourage
the government and other stakeholders to adopt
it.

The Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Daniel
Syme who launched the Project, acknowledged the
contributions of the NGO particularly in the
provision of education infrastructure,
construction of dams, improved livelihoods for
women and the youth and advocating for the
formulation and implementation of good polices.

He called on the Municipal and District Assemblies
to be active in supporting the NGO to implement
all the packages in the project.

Source - GNA

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