Minister for Education Lauds Efforts & Work of Parliamentary Select Committee on Education 


The Minister for Education, Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang has acknowledged the efforts and work of the Parliamentary Select Committee on education for their role played this year. 

Not only in monitoring but also helping to resolve and find amicable solutions to the strike by Polytechnic Teachers Association of Ghana (POTAG). 

During the monitoring she said, the committee has come to appreciate the key challenges confronting the education sector.
 
Prof. Opoku- Agyemang made the point when addressing the committee at a meeting in Koforidua. 

She hoped that, the workshop will bring additional inputs that will help the Ministry’s programme to overcome the challenges being faced. 

She said the trust of the sectors policies and programmes in 2014 covered key areas including, improving management efficiency, improving equitable access to and participation in education and training, quality of teaching and learning outcomes especially in languages, Mathematics and science. 

She said the sectors key deliverables, policy initiative, programmes and projects include rehabilitation of dilapidated school structures, rebrand and support Technical and vocational education and training, implementing a policy of zero tolerance for teacher absenteeism and improving time on task and implementation policy to boost the teaching and learning of science and mathematics. 

Highlighting on key performances, she said, in June 2014 review of performances, three stakeholders forum were organised with Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executive both in Accra and Kumasi to improve school management to enhance access, quality and investing in school infrastructure. 

She noted that, there has been an increase in enrolment at all levels of basic Education between 2012/13 and that of 2013/14 academic years. 

Enrolment level now stands at one point six million from one point four million for kindergarten, four point one million from three point nine million for primary and one point four million from one point three million for the Junior high Schools. 

Prof. Opoku-Agyeman said, the rate of teacher absenteeism has reduced from twenty seven percent in 2013 to eleven percent as at June this year. 

She said, the education ministry is confronted with a number of challenges such as slow pace of rehabilitation of schools infrastructures due to inadequate funding, low performance in English, mathematics and science, huge wage bills of which 94 percent of 2014 Government’s budget is allocated to salaries, weak management structures, inadequate and untimely release of funds. 

Prof. Opoku-Agyeman said, the ministry will continue to count on the support and guidance from the committee to resolve the bottlenecks the sector faces and together improve the quality and equitable education in Ghana. The MP for Daffiama Busie Issa constituency and chairman of the Education select Committee, Mathias Asoma Puozaa, in his address, said, participants are drown from a wider range who are all on a common course for  the development of education in Ghana. 

He urged the participants to take up the issues seriously for the development of the country and its future leaders. Mr. Puozaa said, opportunity such as this is needed to truly deliberate on issues regarding education to ensure its success. 

He commended Star Ghana for its sponsorship and urged other stakeholders to emulate that good example.


GBC