Ntim Fordjour tours Tema on ‘My First Day in School’

A deputy Minister of Education, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, yesterday toured some schools in the Greater Accra Region to observe how pupils were faring in ‘My First Day in School’ at the beginning of the new academic calendar.

The day is used to welcome newly enrolled pupils to public basic schools in the country.

Rev. Fordjour was accompanied on his rounds by the Greater Accra Regional Director of Education, Ms Monica Ankrah; the Tema West Municipal Director of Education, Mr Isaac McCarthy; the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Tema West, Ms Anna Adukwei Addo, and other officials.

Among the schools visited were the Sakumono Complex 1 and 2, the Holy Child R/C Basic and the Sakumono TWMA Primary, all in the Tema West municipality.

There were a total of 48 new kindergarten entrants at the Sakumono Complex 1 Primary School, while there were 134 and 47 at the Sakumono Complex Two and the Sakumono TWMA Primary schools, respectively, as of the time of the visit.

Rev. Fordjour presented some items, including exercise books, pencils and erasers, for distribution to the pupils to make them feel welcome in their new environment.

Equitable quality education

At the end of the tour, Rev. Fordjour called on parents and other stakeholders to complement the government’s efforts at ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education, as contained in Goal Four of the UN sustainable development goals.

He said education was critical to a nation’s development, hence the need to equip children with the requisite knowledge, skills and aptitude to compete with the best in the world.

The minister also advised the pupils to study hard to become responsible citizens in future.

He said the government was continuously repositioning the educational system to improve quality and urged parents to enrol their children and make sure they remained in school to guarantee them a brighter future.

Commendation

Ms Ankrah, for her part, commended teachers for their effort and urged them to continue to mentor pupils to attain excellence.

Ms Adukwei Addo said the visit was also an opportunity to observe the infrastructural and logistical challenges facing some of the schools.

She pledged that the assembly would address those challenges, especially the burnt Kindergarten block at the Sakumono Complex 1 Primary.

The Head Teacher of the school, Madam Joyce Danso, who spoke with the Daily Graphic, said in November 2020, there was a fire outbreak at the Kindergarten Unit of the school, destroying the roof and some furniture.

She said although the incident was reported to the appropriate authorities, nothing had been done about it yet.

Madam Danso said the situation had led to the crowding of the pupils in a temporary structure and, therefore, appealed for the renovation of the facility.

Writer’s email: benjamin.glover@graphic.com.gh