Strengthening Church-State Partnership in Education

In the wake of supporting dialogue, negotiations and lobby processes that would lead to the formalization of the partnership frame work between the Government and Churches including other Faith-Based Organisations in education services delivery, management and governance in Ghana, the National Catholic Secretariat (NCS) and STAR-Ghana Partnership Project on Education has been launched at the Koforidua Pastoral and Training Centre.

The Project, according to Mr. Samuel Zan Akologo, Executive Secretary of the Department of Human Development at the NCS would also facilitate knowledge sharing and documentation of both practical and strategic ways of improving the quality of education in Ghana.

To achieve this noble project, the NCS through the Department of Human Development benefitted from a grant of US$350,000 from STAR-Ghana to support activities towards enhanced education service delivery in Ghana. STAR-Ghana is a pooled funding arrangement to support civil society development activities in Ghana. It is funded by the European Union, DFID-UK and DANIDA-Denmark.

He noted that the partnership between Religious Bodies and the State in education services delivery dated back long before independence which had continued even after, with varying levels of quality and cooperation, saying “there were countless sources and references that attested to the mutual benefit to both the Church and Government but the partnership had remained fluid and undocumented.”

Since 1999, the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference had taken serious steps with Government to review their partnership in education, with the institution of a joint Committee to review and draft a new partnership agreement between Government and the Religious Bodies in management of Mission Schools completing its report for government in July 2008 but had since not been formalized by Government for endorsement.

It was in this context that the Project was conceived to improve management, supervision and supply-side accountability for education at the decentralized level with the full recognition and involvement of Religious Unit Managers and other stakeholders. Improved supply-side accountability would require that Catholic Education Managers' attitude to engaging education stakeholders for feedback on their delivery of services is enhanced. Consequently, their management and retrieval of educational data need to be improved also.

The three-year Project which will span from 2012 to 2014 is titled: Government and Church Partnership towards Enhancing Education Service Delivery and Governance in Ghana is expected to facilitate a process of formalizing the partnership that existed between the Government and Church in the Management of Religious Unit Schools in Ghana.

The Project was launched by Rev. Msgr. Francis Twum-Barimah, Vicar General of Koforidua on behalf of the Local Ordinary, Most Rev. Joseph Afrifah-Agyekum at a two-day Project Briefing and Operational Planning Meeting for Regional Managers of Catholic Schools and Diocesan Development Officers (DDOs) from the Twenty Arch/Dioceses and a Vicariate in Ghana.

The Meeting was aimed at providing information on the Project, funded by STAR-Ghana and to develop an operational plan for the implementation of the Project.

The Meeting also brought together diverse stakeholders in Education in Ghana including Ms. Bernice Juliet Adu, Assistant Director, Ghana Education Service (GES), and Madam Adriana Kandilige, Eastern Regional Director of Education to explore how the objectives of the project could be maximized through collaborative effort.

The launching ceremony, chaired by Rev. Msgr. Alex Bobby Benson, Director of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), was also attended by Very Rev. Dr. John Addae-Boateng, Director of Education and Religious Education at the NCS, whose Directorate would play a leadership role in the Project implementation.

With the introduction of this honorable project, the Church is indeed happy the Project would improve the management and supervision of education at the decentralized level since education was dear to the heart of the Church.

The Ministry of Education in October 1999, approved recommendations from the Ghana Education Service(GES) Council on the Right of Educational Units to manage and supervise Educational Institutions established and developed by their respective religious bodies in partnership with the Government.

The Catholic Church sees education as one of the means of evangelisation, which should motivate all Regional Managers and Development Officers in the Church to make effort in seeing the Project to its successful implementation and to be proactive in the Project implementation to ensure that deadlines and reporting standards were not compromised.

The Project would be of great help in ensuring proper understanding of the roles of Regional Managers and District Directors and active participation of all stakeholders of Catholic Education in Educational Delivery.

It would also help identify a well defined role and position of the Educational Units in the Decentralisation System and give a clear position of the Educational Unit Managers on the organogram of the Ghana Education Service.

Over the years the Government of Ghana and the Religious Bodies have had a partnership arrangement which allows Religious Bodies to manage their Schools while the government pays the teachers and provides infrastructure and teaching and learning materials.

The number of schools established by Religious Bodies has opened access to more children of school going age in Ghana. Almost 50% of basic Schools have been st up by Religious Bodies and other organisations.

The Church and Government have been partners in education and there is the need for the Government to respect the Church's partnership role by removing the obstacles in the way of the Churches to manage their Schools so that morality, discipline and excellence can be reasonably assured.

In recognition of the Churches' ownership of their Schools, Government should review its representation on the Board of Governors of our Schools.

The Partnership between the State and the Church should be a partnership of peace and it is through Mission Schools that they impart an all-round education to the child, with the hope that he/she will grow up to be academically equipped, psychologically balanced, morally upright, socially disciplined and physically fit.

The Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference in a Communiqué issued in 2004 during its Plenary Assembly in Damongo in the Northern Region said “We are of the opinion that the issue of the need for the existence of the denominational schools is not a question of favour being sought but rather a matter of right being claimed. We insist that parents should be offered the opportunity to choose, among several options, the type of education they want for their children.

“It is for this reason that we find it difficult to accept the practice of sidelining our Unit school system in matters of educational policy. We emphasise that this policy cannot be in the interest of the citizens, the taxpayers, as it deprives them of their choice in such a vital area of life.

Fully convinced that a sizeable portion of the Ghanaian citizenry are beneficiaries of Catholic education and specifically seek education in Catholic educational institutions, we hope that a situation of needless confrontation or conflict will not arise where, because the church's views are not respected, we are forced to claim our schools back and turn them completely into private ones,”

The Bishops expressed their disillusioned by the lip-service that is paid to the contribution of the Catholic Church to national development. On the one hand, on formal and official occasions, we are told time and time again that the Catholic Church's contribution to education, healthcare, social welfare, agriculture, provision of potable water, etc., is unparalleled. On the other hand, we are constantly side-lined in matters of policy making and implementation.

A declaration on Christian Education Gravissimum Educationis proclaimed by Pope Paul VI on October 28, 1965, says that in a special way, the duty of educating belongs to the Church, not merely because she must be recognized as a human society capable of educating, but especially because she has the responsibility of announcing the way of salvation to all men, of communicating the life of Christ to those who believe, and, in her unfailing solicitude, of assisting men to be able to come to the fullness of this life.

The Church is bound as a mother to give to these children of hers an education by which their whole life can be imbued with the spirit of Christ and at the same time do all she can to promote for all peoples the complete perfection of the human person, the good of earthly society and the building of a world that is more human.

Parents who have the primary and inalienable right and duty to educate their children must enjoy true liberty in their choice of schools. Consequently, the public power, which has the obligation to protect and defend the rights of citizens, must see to it, in its concern for distributive justice, that public subsidies are paid out in such a way that parents are truly free to choose according to their conscience the schools they want for their children.

“In addition, it is the task of the State to see to it that all citizens are able to come to a suitable share in culture and are properly prepared to exercise their civic duties and rights. Therefore, the State must protect the right of children to an adequate School education, check on the ability of teachers and the excellence of their training, look after the health of the pupils and in general, promote the whole school project.

But it must always keep in mind the principle of subsidiarity so that there is no kind of school monopoly, for this is opposed to the native rights of the human person, to the development and spread of culture, to the peaceful association of citizens and to the pluralism that exists today in ever so many societies.”

“Therefore this sacred synod exhorts the faithful to assist to their utmost in finding suitable methods of education and programs of study and in forming teachers who can give youth a true education. Through the associations of parents in particular they should further with their assistance all the work of the school but especially the moral education it must impart.”

Under Catholic Schools, the declaration noted that “The influence of the Church in the field of education is shown in a special manner by the Catholic school. No less than other schools does the Catholic school pursue cultural goals and the human formation of youth.

“But its proper function is to create for the School community a special atmosphere animated by the Gospel spirit of freedom and charity, to help youth grow according to the new creatures they were made through baptism as they develop their own personalities, and finally to order the whole of human culture to the news of salvation so that the knowledge the students gradually acquire of the world, life and man is illumined by faith. So, indeed the Catholic school, while it is open, as it must be, to the situation of the contemporary world, leads its students to promote efficaciously the good of the earthly city and also prepares them for service in the spread of the Kingdom of God, so that by leading an exemplary apostolic life they become, as it were, a saving leaven in the human community.”

“Since, therefore, the Catholic school can be such an aid to the fulfillment of the mission of the People of God and to the fostering of the dialogue between the Church and mankind, to the benefit of both, it retains even in our present circumstances the utmost importance. Consequently, this Sacred Synod proclaims anew what has already been taught in several documents of the magisterium, namely: the right of the Church freely to establish and to conduct schools of every type and level. And the Council calls to mind that the exercise of a right of this kind contributes in the highest degree to the protection of freedom of conscience, the rights of parents, as well as to the betterment of culture itself.”

The Catholic Church in Ghana is second only to the State in the provision of educational facilities. It provides 25 to 30 percent of educational institutions and can boast of providing of education in some of the most deprived areas in Ghana. With this statistics, it stands to reason that the Catholic Church should be recognised as a principal provider and stakeholder in this enterprise.

In 2005, statistics on School population indicate that out f the 3,055 kindergartens for all educational units, the Catholic Church has 946 while in the Primary and Junior High School(JSS) categories, the Catholic Church owns 2,365 and 855 schools respectively out of 5,901 and 2,182 for all the units. Out of the 122 Senior Secondary Schools (SSS) and 77 Vocational/Technical Schools for the Units, 51 and 48 respectively belonged to the Catholic Church. At the time, the Church also owned eight of the 22 Teacher Training Colleges.

The Church as of 2010 (five years later) has about 1,266 kindergartens, 2,020 Primary Schools, 957 Junior High Schools (JHS), 61 Senior High Schools (SHS), nine Colleges of Education, 11 Tertiary Institutions and 58 Vocational/Technical representing 64% of Vocational Training of Church-based Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the Country.

These statistics are clear indication that the Church has the potential to impact positively on the delivery of employable skills since Technical and Vocational Training has been recognised worldwide as being important for national socio-economic development.

With these impacts by the Church, it should not be only accorded honour, but expect also to be consulted in matters of the delivery of education in the country. Unfortunately, most of what we get is lip-service and a rather weak commitment on the part of the governing institutions that are responsible for providing and supervising education in this country.

At the first National Catholic Educational Forum held in 2010 at Kumasi, the participants in a Release signed by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, Most Rev. Charles Palmer-Buckle, who was at the time Acting President of the Ghana catholic Bishops' Conference, said any government that would not permit Religious Bodies to build and manage their educational institutions would be failing Ghanaians, judging from the spate of indiscipline and immorality in the educational institutions and particularly among the youth.

The five-day Forum on the theme The Church and State Partnership in Education: The Catholic Experience-Challenges and the Way Forward was attended by Bishops, Priests and Religious as well as Catholic Educationists and Practitioners involved in educational delivery in the country.

The Forum was organised essentially to enable the Stakeholders in Catholic Educationists and practitioners come together to examine the Church's education mission and enterprise and to find the way forward to most of the problems by the Church in her education delivery in the country. It was also to find ways to improving upon the Church-State partnership in the education delivery

The Participants observed with great concern the apparent foreign influence in the rampant reforms of Ghana's Education System and the deliberate attempt to curb the influence of religion and Religious Bodies in education delivery in the Country.

They discussed the address of the Minister of Education, Mr. Alex Tetteh-Enyo at the time, in which he called for more dialogue on matters affecting education delivery towards deepening the Church-State partnership.

This has become imperative in the face of the decentralisation of education delivery in the country and the roles of the catholic educational units vis-à-vis the District Directorates of Education and the Ghana Education Service.

As a matter of fact, the Church is ever committed to assisting in the provision of education, especially for the poor and deprived. This sign of the Church's commitment to education is her opening of the Catholic University at Fiapre in Sunyani and the Catholic Institute for Business Technology (CIBT) to offer opportunity for more people in this country to have access to higher education.

The Catholic School was a place of integral formation through critical and systematic assimilation of culture where students are taught to be sincere, honest and tolerant. Catholic Education ensures that people have a relationship with God, neighbour and society and helps the individual to have a balance relation with nature, environment and self.

With these efforts by the Church, it would be prudent for the Government to improve upon its commitment and efforts in the sector of education and to enhance the involvement of the Church and civil society in the educational enterprise.

Mr. Michael Nsowah, a former acting Director General of the GES in 2006 during the Catholic Education Week Celebration stated that: “The partnership between GES and the Religious Bodies will have to be reviewed under the decetralisation Policy. If the partnership is to work peacefully and effectively towards achievement of quality education and opening access to a lot of children, then there is need to review the mode of operation between GES and the Educational/Religious Units. The need therefore for adjustments should be recognised, appreciated and accepted as inevitable. The functions of the District Directors of Education and Unit Managers on the other hand need to be redefined.”

Speaking on theme: The Educational partnership between the Government and Religious Bodies: The Way Forward, Mr. Nsowah indicated that when these steps are taken, “it will remove all areas of overlapping which have brought about strained relationship between District Directors and some Regional managers.

In the writer's view, we all need to work hard to improve information flow so that we can work well with each other. Schools and for that matter children belong to Ghana. We all are custodians of the Children in the Schools and we should remember that we are accountable for the education of the people. Handling of our organizational relationship should not impact negatively on schooling. Let us endeavour to promote holistic education for the people of this country.

At the star-Ghana semi-annual education convention held from 10 – 11 july, 2012 on building partnerships towards quality education outcomes; the experience of faith-based organizations in ghana, mr. Zan Akologo said For many Faith-Based Organizations, the establishment, management and direction of schools is a faith injunction. For Christians, the mandate of Jesus Christ to educate and bring all people to the knowledge of their Creator amounts to a call to take up education. For us Catholics, there is an authoritative Papal Document (Encyclical) on education titled GRAVISSIMUM EDUCATIONIS. The Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference has a formal policy document for Catholic Education (Ghana Catholic Education Policy, 2009). The Church's position on the right of every individual to obtain formal education is consistent with the thrust of Article 25 of the 1992 Fourth Republican Constitution.

Overview of Partnerships in Education in Ghana

The Catholic Church, and indeed most other Christian denominations, view education as a joint enterprise among stakeholders. Hence since 1882, there has been a partnership agreement between the Government and Religious Bodies in the management of schools. References can be made to important national policy documents including, the 1925 Gordon Guggisburg Education Principles, the 1961 Education Act (Article 27) and the 1993 Local Government Act 455 (Article 87). On October 18th, 1999 the then Minister of Education – Honourable Ekwow Spio Garbrah issued a ministerial directive titled 'The Right of Education Units to Manage and Supervise Educational Institutions established and developed by their Respective Religious Bodies in Partnership with the Government'. On Thursday April 24th 2008, the Minister of Education, Science and Sports – Prof. Dominic Fobih inaugurated a seventeen-member Committee chaired by Prof. Kwasi Ansu-Kyeremeh, 'to review the 1999 partnership document on education management within the context of current developments in the education sector, which includes the decentralization of education management'.

Track Record of Faith-Based Organizations in Education

• First to introduce formal education in Ghana (Portuguese Catholic Chaplains in Elimina in 1529 and Islamic Koranic schools in Northern Ghana).
• Faith-Based Organizations have pioneered strategic areas of education such as Technical and Vocational education, education for girls and disabled children.
• FBOs have opened schools in the most deprived regions and rural areas in Ghana.
• There is general public acknowledgement that Mission schools are among the best schools in the country. Check the Senior Secondary Schools Performance League Table. They are also synonymous with discipline, dedication, honesty and commitment to duty!
• Faith-Based schools provide options to parents who wish to give their children religious-based education and are effectively supplementing Government efforts in the education enterprise.
• Faith-Based schools facilitate the poor segment of society to have access to top quality education, sometimes surpassing the so-called elite private schools which cost a fortune.
• FBOs have very efficient established management structures for education from the community to national level.
• Basic curriculum for Faith-Based schools has been consistent with national education curriculum and they do participate in the same national assessment exercises where they excel anyway.
• The Catholic Church alone accounts for over 15% of basic schools, 10% of senior secondary schools, 21% of Colleges of Education (Former Teacher Training Colleges) and about 39% of Technical and Vocational Schools in the country. Now add Islamic, Ahmadiyya and other Christian Mission Schools!

Challenges to the Partnership

• Report of the Committee that reviewed the 1999 Partnership Agreement between the Government and Religious Bodies in the management of Mission Schools was presented to the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports in July, 2008. No formal approval or rejection of the recommendation up till now!!
• The Education Act, 2008 which replaced the 1961 Act acknowledged the immense contribution of Religious Bodies to the educational system but failed to define partnership arrangements and relationships between actors in a clear and succinct manner.
• Some Government appointed actors in the Ghana Education Service are taking undue advantage of the void to define education management according to their whims and caprices!
• Some political actors are playing games with education by their careless statements, adhoc and sporadic measures and replacing national interest with partisan manifesto agendas.
• Some Development Partners are clearly breaching fundamental Aid Policies of especially ownership, by using their development assistance to dictate national frameworks for education. For example, some Regional and District Directors of the Ghana Education Service are currently using a clandestine document defining decentralization in Education services and management that bears the logo of the said Development Partner instead of the national Code of Arms.
• High and frequent incidence of turn-over of Ministers of Education. They hardly get settled to the issues and this is quite disruptive of policy negotiation processes.
• In rather subtle ways, Proprietors and Managers of Faith-Based institutions and structures are being excluded or marginalized in allocation of resources, policy information, national dialogues and capacity building activities.
• Yet majority of Ghanaians remain largely uninformed about the situation and its potential danger to erode quality of education in Ghana.

The National Catholic Secretariat's Response

The National Catholic Secretariat, representing the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference, is in partnership with Star-Ghana to enhance education service delivery and management through the window of redefining and deepening the partnership between Government and Faith-Based Organizations.

Key Results of the Project to Date

• Multi-stakeholder dialogue meetings have been held in eight out of the ten regions in Ghana between March and June this year, 2012. More than nine Faith-Based Organizations, representatives of broader civil society organizations and Directors of Ghana Education Service at the Decentralized level have taken part in these dialogue meetings, endorsed the need for partnership and are making concrete and workable proposals for same.
• A deliberate and consistent media strategy has helped to place and sustain the issue of partnerships in education in the public domain. It is not surprising that the Star-Ghana Semi Annual Education Convention is focusing on the theme 'Building Partnerships Towards Quality Education Outcomes'.
• There are cases of where some Government appointed Directors of the Ghana Education Service came to the dialogue meetings with entrenched positions and later softening down to constructive engagement because of the dialogue approach.
• Education stakeholders of diverse Faith-Based Organizations are now finding spaces to share ideas and practices towards quality education outcomes at the decentralized level.

Conclusion
On behalf of the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference, I wish to conclude this presentation, by inviting the Ministry of Education to join us to call a national conference of stakeholders to harmonise and celebrate the wonderful ideas of actualizing, in a more meaningful way, the partnership between Government and Faith-Based organizations towards quality education outcomes in Ghana. This conference should take place before November this year so that it can form part of the political agenda for the 2012 Elections for the new Government of January, 2013.