Napo and other dignitaries cutting the tape to commission the classroom block
Government has taken a key decision to allow missions to manage schools that they constructed in the country, the Minister of Education, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, has announced.
He said government would soon commence the necessary processes to allow the missions to manage the schools they built.
Dr Prempeh was hopeful the final decision would be reached soon.
“Government will start negotiations with the missions soon about allowing them to manage the schools they constructed. There will be talks between government and the missions before a contract is signed.
“I am confident that before the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government’s first four-year term in office expires, the missions would have been given the permit to manage the schools they built, as it used to be some time ago.”
The Education Minister, who is affectionately known as ‘Napo’, disclosed this to the media when he commissioned a 10-unit ultramodern classroom block at the Saint Annes Anglican Junior High School (JHS) in the Manhyia South Constituency.
Napo, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Manhyia South, used his share of the GetFund to build the huge edifice to replace a wooden structure in which the pupils were compelled to study in the past.
The Education Minister expressed gross worry over the performance of students in some senior and junior high schools in the country, noting that the unfortunate trend needs to be addressed by players in the private and the public sectors.
Napo noted that reverting the management of the schools to the missions would boost academic performance, explaining that “the missions will manage the schools and government will pay the teachers.”
Free Education
He also denied media reports that only brilliant students would benefit from the government’s free education programme, which would be rolled out in September, this year.
Napo said “any JHS pupil that will pass the BECE examination and his/her name captured in the computer placement programme for senior high school will automatically benefit from the government’s free education policy.
“Nothing has changed, the criteria that was used to pass the BECE pupils during examinations during the previous government’s era has been maintained. I don’t know any place on this earth where examination is not used to promote students.”
He said the government’s free education policy would not hamper academic work, stressing the need for parents and guardians to encourage their children to pass the examinations in order to benefit from the amazing policy.
Andrews A. Afriyie, Headmaster of Saint Annes Anglican JHS, commended Napo for always coming to the aid of his school, noting that the minister in the past had supplied laptops, exercise and textbooks, furniture, among others, to the school.
Betty Asare, who represented the Kumasi Metro Director of Education, thanked Napo for enhancing education in his constituency and Ghana at large, urging him to sustain his brilliant work.
From I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi