Association commends GES

Sankor, C/R, Dec 27, GNA - The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Challenge Heights, a Non profit organisation, Mr James Kofi Annan, has commended the Ghana Education Service (GES) for taking punitive action against some head-teachers in Accra for sending pupils home for school fees.

He said it was unfortunate that some head-teachers were sending pupils home for fees in spite of the orientation by the Ministry of Education and Sports and the Ghana Education Service on the capitation grant to enable children to have access to quality education. Mr Annan said the government had sent money to every public school for the fees and other expenses of pupils, adding that, it was "diabolical" for some school heads to send children home for fees. He said as a "Children's Rights Organisation" it would not sit down without passing comments on the action of some head-teachers to deprive children from having access to quality education to enable them to become responsible adults in future.

The CEO said these when he feted more than 400 children at Sankor near Winneba in the Awutu-Effutu-Senya district at a Christmas party on Sunday.

He also used the occasion to launch a 17 million-cedi scholarship scheme for 29 children at Sankor.

Mr Annan who is banker, urged the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service to continue monitoring head-teachers who want to deprive children from being educated.

The CEO said last year the Association granted 15 children in the area scholarships at the primary, junior and senior secondary schools and announced that next year the number would increase to 40. He noted that the Challenge Heights would construct community complex at Sankor at the cost of 500 million cedis, which would include a sports facility, Internet caf=E9, lecture hall and a social hall for other programmes.

Mr Annan said the association would establish a branch in Accra, launch a magazine and embark on a health programme to ensure personal hygiene, environmental cleanliness and malaria prevention. The CEO said between 2002 and 2005, 46 children between 5 and 16 years old, who were sent to Yeji, in the Brong Ahafo region by their parents to do fishing had been brought back and enrolled in schools at Winneba.

Mr Solomon Abban Quaye, District Chief Executive for Awutu-Effutu-Senya who launched the scheme praised Mr Annan for his patriotism.

He gave the assurance that the District Assembly would assist the Association to implement its development programmes. Mr Quaye urged the Association to register with the Assembly since it was an NGO to enable it benefit from interventions to promote education and assist its efforts to alleviate poverty.

He appealed to well-to-do people in the District to emulate Mr Annan to promote the socio-economic advancement of the area.