Ghana Library Authority celebrates literacy day at Yilo Krobo
The Eastern Regional Directorate of the Ghana Library Authority (GLA) has in partnership with Book Aid International and Talking Tipps Africa celebrated this year’s Eastern Regional International Literacy Day at Somanya in the Yilo Krobo Municipality.
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The programme, which was celebrated last Wednesday on the theme: “Promoting multilingual education: literacy for mutual understanding and peace”, was sponsored by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Parliamentary Candidate for the Yilo Krobo Constituency, Dr Richard Twum Barimah.
A number of basic schools that took part in the programme included the Yilo State Basic School, Somanya Methodist Basic School, Sra Presbyterian Basic School, Somanya Roman Catholic Basic School and Somanya Bethel Preparatory School.
The students and pupils who contested in reading aloud, storytelling, pick and act and musical books among others, were advised to make reading a habit to enable them to become good scholars in future.
Learning poverty
The Eastern Region has since 2018 increased libraries from six to 26 with few to be added to cover all the districts and municipalities before the year ends. In the first half of this year, the Eastern Region through GLA eradicated learning poverty amongst 8,399 pupils across the region.
A total of 100,756 reading resources have also been supplied to students, with a total of 24 reading clubs training in various topical areas and levels from technology hubs, during the period. Also, with improved and convenient reading spaces, the region has had an average of 198,815 readers since 2019.
Addressing the durbar, the Eastern Regional Director of GLA, Evans Korletey-Tene, noted with concern that as the day was celebrated in the Yilo Krobo Municipality, it was his humble plea for the area to get a befitting library to sustain the gains made in literacy promotion across the municipality.
He said: “Literacy is not just about reading and writing; it is a fundamental skill that empowers individuals to participate fully in society, make informed decisions and contribute to personal and societal development.”
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Cultural diversity
Mr Korletey-Tene said in a world where linguistic and cultural diversity were increasingly recognised as valuable assets, multilingual education was no longer a luxury but a necessity, adding, “it is a powerful tool for building bridges between communities, promoting cultural understanding and breaking down barriers that divide us.”
The Yilo Krobo NPP Parliamentary Candidate, Dr Twum, encouraged the students and pupils in the municipality to be serious with literacy issues, saying it was the foundation to their educational career.
He particularly advised the participants not to joke with the French language at their basic education level, citing an example of himself learning French now, as it had become necessary in his life even though he was an adult.
“By recognising and valuing different languages, we create a more inclusive and harmonious society where individuals can communicate effectively across cultural boundaries,” Dr Twum emphasised.
The Yilo Krobo Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Eric Tetteh, said the assembly was making all efforts to ensure that formal education thrived well in the area.
He said the government was not joking with education, hence the provision of printing machines to all the district directorates of education across the country to ensure the smooth conduct of end-of-term examinations. He also stressed the need for the learners across the municipality to concentrate on their studies.
Competition
The Municipal Director of Education, John Gasu, expressed the directorate’s appreciation to the GLA, other collaborators and Dr Twum in particular for the honour done the Yilo Krobo Municipality with the programme which had resulted in an effective reading competition among the learners.
“Let us therefore encourage our children to read at home and everywhere they find any reading material,” the director advised.
Deserving pupils who performed well in the activities were presented with book prizes.
Schools in the municipality were also given books and other reading materials provided by Book Aid International and Talking Tipps Africa.