Adopt right education to minimize streetism - Frimpong-Boateng

Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, Chairman of the Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission (PURC), has expressed concern about the growing incidence of “streetism” blaming it on the country's educational system.

Streetism is said to be the living of homeless or unmonitored children on the street, especially when related to drugs, disease, crime, or delinquency.

Speaking on the topic: “Role of Education in addressing Streetism” the Chief Executive of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital said the whole system of the country's education was wrong.

He said: “If after 40 years we have not been able to build a mini hydroelectric power station and still depend on foreigners to build every dam, transformer, water pumps and water purification system then there must be something wrong some where.”

Professor Frimpong-Boateng, who was the founder of the National Cardiothoracic Centre and President of the Ghana Heart Foundation, was speaking at the 13the Congregation Lecture of the University of Education, Winneba, (UEW) at Winneba.

It was under the theme: “Sustaining excellence in Educational leadership for accelerated national development”.

Professor Frimpong-Boateng said it was sad that the country had to import everything from tooth pick to aircraft with little or no support to the tertiary science institutions.

He said if Ghana wanted to move forward then we need to strive to create a system where the tertiary institution would use their capacity to establish firms.

These firms, according to him, could be established as a cooperative venture between universities, local government authorities and a consortium of interested financial institutions.

The dean, lecturers and students of the UEW and heads of government institutions in Winneba attended the lecture.