Science education, key to accelerated devt — Prez

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education holds the key to the accelerated development of the country.

He said nations that had progressed and developed had done so because of their mastery in Science, Technology and Mathematics.
President Akufo-Addo said this when he welcomed winners of the 2019 National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ), together with their teachers, officials of the Ghana

Education Service (GES) and the organisers of the quiz, Prime Time, to the Jubilee House in Accra last Tuesday.

The Quiz Mistress, Professor Elsie Effah Kaufman, was also part of the delegation.

Winners

St Augustine's College in Cape Coast, Central Region, were winners of the competition, ending its 12-year NSMQ trophy drought.

The school was represented by Masters Joseph Maino Afful, Anthony Papa Eliason and Jimmy Stephen Newton.

The coveted NSMQ trophy was contested for in the finals by three male schools — St Peter's Senior High School (PERSCO), Nkwatia-Kwahu, Presbyterian Boys' School, Legon (PRESEC) and St Augustine's College.

St Augustine’s won the contest with 39 points, followed by PRESEC, which had 34 points, while PERSCO came third with 25 points.

Assurance

President Akufo-Addo gave an assurance that the country would continue to apply its energy and resources to science education.

He commended St Augustine’s and all stakeholders, especially old students of competing schools, and the organisers of the quiz for their efforts.

Sponsorship

A Deputy Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, who led the delegation, said the quiz was being sponsored by the Ghana Education Service (GES).

He said previously, students were made to contribute towards the organisation of the programme, but said with the advent of the free senior high school (SHS) policy, the government deemed it necessary to provide funding for the programme to help broaden the knowledge of students in the sciences.

Dr Adutwum paid glowing tribute to the St Augustine’s old students association (APSU) for their immense contribution to the success of their alma mater in the contest.