Nanumba North DCE calls for more trained teachers

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Nanumba North District, Mohammed Ibn Abass, has called on the government to post more trained teachers and health personnel to the area to help address the low standard of education, and the health needs of the people.

According to the DCE, the unrelenting efforts by the ruling government and the district assembly towards the promotion of quality education and healthcare delivery would be a mirage, if adequate personnel were not ushered in.

Speaking in an interview with The Chronicle, after paying a working visit to some schools and health centres in the district, Mr. Abass lamented over the unspeakable teacher-student ratio in the area, which he observed was a great contributing factor to the falling standard of education in the district.

It was discovered that the free education policy of the past government, had seen a lot of children enrolled in the various schools without the corresponding facilities like study desks, adequate classrooms, textbooks and teachers.

There were instances where one teacher had to take care of between 87 to 115 children in a class, instead of 45.

Due to accommodation problems, some of the teachers, especially the trained ones, according to the DCE, had refused postings to the district, while the few others accepted but were not regular at school due to long distances they had to travel daily.

Mr. Ibn Abass, also the immediate past Member of Parliament (MP) for the Bimbilla Constituency, however, promised the commitment of the assembly to use the little available resources to solve some of the teething problems militating against the smooth development of education in the area.

The DCE also pledged to devote more resources for the construction of more classrooms to replace the makeshift structures in the various communities.

Calling on the government and other donor agencies to assist the district provide adequate accommodation for the teachers, the DCE challenged them to also give out their best to enhance the future development of the area.

According to him, the assembly would do everything possible to ensure that the teachers were well motivated to work.

Mr. Abass recounted that, the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) was also doing well in the district, and called for more professionals to the various health centres to address the health needs of the inhabitants.

He noted that the district needed more health centres and personnel to reduce the cases of infant and maternal deaths in the area.

The DCE said the long distances from the communities to some of the health centres, coupled with the poor road networks, usually caused birth complications for most pregnant women in the district.

He again pledged the assembly's resolve to assist the health professionals in the area to carry out their duties in a peaceful atmosphere.