Students in North Tongu receive SEIP scholarships

Juapong (V/R), May 22, GNA - Beneficiary Senior High School (SHS) students of government's Secondary Education Improvement Project (SEIP) in the North Tongu District of the Volta Region, have been awarded their scholarships.

The scholarships were presented to the beneficiaries and the Heads of the SHS by Mr Samuel Okudjeto Ablakwa, Deputy Minister of Education during a gathering at the Dorfor Senior High School (SHS).

The school heads were presented with cheques for various amounts.

Dorfor Senior High School received GH₵ 14,000, Aveyime-Battor Senior High School, GH₵ 35,000; Battor Senior High School, GH₵ 43,700 and Mepe Saint Kizito Senior Technical School, GH₵ 36,700.

Mr Okudjeto Ablakwa, who is also a Member of Parliament for the area, said the World Bank-funded SEIP would benefit a total of 10,400 students from low income families with 60 per cent of them being females.

Each of the beneficiaries would receive an equivalent of 500 dollars per year in tuition fees, monthly stipends and other fees.

He said the Dorfor SHS would receive an ICT block, classroom block and a library as part of 125 deprived SHSs selected to receive facility upgrades, while 23 new SHSs would also be constructed as part of the project.

'Ghana has only 840 Senior High Schools. If we are to follow our policy of not more than 1500 students in a secondary school, we will not have enough senior high schools to absorb the qualifying applicants into our Senior High Schools,' the Deputy Minister said.

Mr Okudjeto Ablakwa said 6,500 mathematics, science and ICT teachers would also receive capacity building.

He said there is a long list of eligibility criteria including students who are orphaned, those whose parents earn below the minimum wage, are unemployed, living with HIV and AIDS or sickle cell and students whose parents are beneficiaries of the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty programme.

The Deputy Director General of Ghana Education Service, Mrs Elizabeth De-Souza, encouraged the students to make the most of the opportunity that was being afforded them.

GNA