U/E/R: GNAPS Week celebration launched

The Ghana National Association of Private Schools’ week celebration has taken place in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region with a call on the Government, the Ghana Education Service (GES), and other regulatory bodies to relax some of their rules to help promote and encourage private schools.

The launch of this year’s GNAPS week celebration is under the theme “Education is a right: Stakeholders must Support Low-Cost Private School Children.” It was observed with some school children carrying placards with various inscriptions as they marched through the principal streets of Bolgatanga and finally converged at the Ghana Health Service Training Centre.

The GNAPS week celebration’s theme for this year seeks to draw attention to a very important segment of private school children who attend private schools that are located in deprived communities with modest facilities and low-capacity staff yet they offer quality education comparable to the public schools.

In his speech delivered at the launch, the President of the GNAPS Dr. Damasus Tuurosong said every social intervention that targets the poor and marginalized in society should be supported by Government. He noted that yet private schools (PS) are left to fend for themselves lamenting that perhaps the Ghana Education Service (GES) did not appreciate the crucial role played by private schools in educating the Ghanaian child.

Dr. Tuurosong stated that there is a need to re-orient policymakers into realizing that some private schools are also social interventions aimed at providing education in communities where there is no access to quality education.

He added that, according to the 2019 USAID Report, the Upper East Region charges the lowest school fees in Northern Ghana, and possibly the entire country, with an average GHC212 per year or GHC70.67 annually. However, the National Schools Inspectorate Authority (NaSIA), the National Teaching Council (NTC), and the National Council for Curriculum (NaCCA) are all placing charges that are crippling the operations of private schools.

The Upper East Regional Director of Education Bright Armston Lawoe, who doubles as the guest of honor, advised proprietors to work hard to ensure discipline in their various schools, especially in some Senior High Schools. He further urged that students should be encouraged to forge ahead in their education ladder.