Upper East assemblies urged to support libraries

Bolgatanga, Sept. 16, GNA - District assemblies in the Upper East Region have been called upon to eschew lip-service and allocate resources for the development of education.

The Acting Upper East Regional Librarian, Madam Rebecca Atuwum, who made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga, expressed disappointment at the performance of the district assemblies in the region in the development of libraries, especially the Bolgatanga Municipal Assembly (BMA).

Madam Atuwum said she had been tossed around by the BMA for about two years when she made attempts to solicit funds for the purchase of books to equip the Regional Library in Bolgatanga.

She noted that even though the library received book donations from some non-governmental organisations in the region, they were not relevant to the current educational system and thus serves little purpose for students who attend the library.

She further said that although there were regular supplies of books from the head office of the Ghana Library Board (GLB) they were not enough to service the large number of students doing remedial, and that the library is often full to capacity, thereby putting pressure on the facilities.

Madam Atuwum said for these reasons the assembly requested her to make a budget proposal for 14 million cedis for the purchase of some relevant senior secondary school textbooks some time ago. "For about two years I have been tossed around by the BMA as if education in the region means nothing to them," she added.

The Librarian explained that most students fail to perform in their final examination because they depend solely on the classroom work and do little on their own.

She said a well-equipped library should afford students the opportunity to realise their dream of passing well in the SSSCE, adding that she had tried every opportunity available to ensure that the Regional Library and District Libraries in the region were of encouraging standard.

She expressed regret that apart from the regional library, Bolgatanga has no other library. "Even the regional library which seems to serve that purpose was not designed to include children's library. What is available is only an improvised library for the children," she indicated.

Madam Atuwum mentioned furniture, re-stocking the library with the relevant textbooks and general rehabilitation of the building as some of the immediate needs of the regional library.

She appealed to district assemblies in the region, individual philanthropists, charity organisations and non-governmental organisations to come to the aid of the library so as to boost learning and education in the region.