A total of 702 varied educational projects have been executed in the Ashanti Region over the last four years, as part of efforts to raise the standard of education, Mr Simon Osei-Mensah, the Minister-designate for the Region, has disclosed.
Giving a breakdown of the projects, he said 424 were executed at the basic level while 278 related to the second-cycle educational level, comprising classroom, administration and dormitory blocks, bungalows for staff and provision of furniture.
Additionally, Senior High School (SHS) enrolment increased from 225, 809 in the 2017/18 academic year to 264, 773 in the 2018/19 academic year, with the 2019/2020 enrolment recording at 288, 811.
Mr Osei-Mensah, who made this known at the inauguration of multiple educational projects in Kumasi, attributed the growth in the educational sector to the government’s massive investment in the area.
“We are seeing encouraging results in the educational sector because the government considers human resource development as critical in ensuring sustainable development and growth,” he emphasized.
The projects inaugurated were jointly supervised by the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) and Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), and funded by the Ghana Education Trust (GET) Fund.
They comprised a 300-bed capacity girls’ dormitory block for the Serwaah Nyarko SHS, a 12-unit classroom block each for the Kumasi Anglican and Asanteman SHSs as well as a 200-bed capacity boys’ dormitory block for the Armed Forces SHS.
The rests are a 12-unit classroom block and 300-bed capacity girls’ dormitory block for the Kumasi Adventist SHS and two separate three-storey dormitory blocks for the Kumasi Senior High and Technical School.
Also inaugurated was a 500-bed capacity girls’ dormitory and 12-unit classroom blocks for the T.I. Ahmadiyya SHS.
Mr Osei-Mensah advised the beneficiary schools to cultivate a good maintenance culture to ensure the longevity of the projects.
“We need a good maintenance culture to save the nation’s resources, especially those relating to infrastructure projects,” the Minister-designate advised.
Regional Director of Education, Ms Mary Owusu Afriyie, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), on the sidelines of the programme, attributed the increase in SHS enrolment to the implementation of the ‘Free Senior High School’ Programme.
He lauded the Ministry of Education for spearheading the execution of the projects, saying they would help to create access for much Ghanaian youth to be educated.
The Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Osei Assibey-Antwi, said education was the foundation for building the successes of every nation, therefore, the authorities were determined to support schools within the Assembly’s jurisdiction to achieve their objectives.
Nana Ampofo Kyei Baffour II, Chief of Asem in Kumasi, was the Special Guest of Honour at the programme.
