Provide quality education for girls - Director General

Mr Samuel Bannerman-Mensah, Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) last Saturday reiterated the need to provide quality education for girls.

This, he said, will in the long run empower women to play effective roles in the country's socio-economic development.

He said, 'The contribution of women to national development has been consistent, resilient and innovative and those who have distinguished themselves got to the top through determination, hard work and encouragement from society.'

Mr Bannerman-Mensah was speaking at the Speech and Prize Giving Day of Accra Girls Senior High School which was on the theme, 'Girls Education, a Key to National Development'.

He urged parents to provide the basic education needs for their girls to enable them to concentrate on their studies and prevent them from engaging in acts that will result in teenage pregnancy.

'We should encourage our girls to take advantage of opportunities available to develop themselves and exhibit their endowed potentials for their own good and that of society.

'We should ensure that girls have time to study at home by reducing the burden of domestic chores so that they do not drop out of school as a result of the embarrassment of low achievement,' he said.

Mr Bannerman-Mensah said interventions which have been made to boost girl child education include the development of poverty alleviation strategies and establishment of scholarship for brilliant but needy girls.

He said the GES has also provided bicycles to make it easier for girls in the northern part of Ghana to cover long distances to attend school.

Mr Bannerman-Mensah said, 'Women who are better educated delay marriage and child bearing, have fewer children and healthier babies, enjoy better earning potential, have stronger decision-making and negotiation skills as well as high self esteem,' he said.

He said no country has achieved economic growth without ensuring the education of its population.

'Investment in education is vital because it promotes the achievement of poverty reduction, universal primary education, gender equality, reduction of infant and child mortality, improvement in maternal health and reduction of the HIV and AIDS prevalence rate,' he added.

Dr Mustapha Ahmed, Member of Parliament for Ayawaso East Constituency advised the students to concentrate on their academic work and make time to learn their cultural values.

He pledged to support the school with five street lights, four sets of Table Tennis equipments, two footballs and a set of jerseys.

Mrs Emma Arthur, Headmistress of the School appealed to individuals, government and non-governmental organisations to assist the school to expand its dormitories, dinning and assembly halls and refurbish the science laboratory.

Christiana Kpodo, a student from the Business Department won the school's Overall Best Student Award for the 2008 West Africa Senior Secondary Certificate Examination while 140 students and staff were awarded for academic excellence and hard work.

Prudential Bank presented a cheque of 2000 Ghana cedis in support of the school's expansion and development projects.