By: Henrietta Afful
The National Education Forum opened today, February 18, 2025, in Ho, the Volta Regional capital, with more than 300 stakeholders from the education and related sectors participating in the three-day event. The forum, initiated by President John Dramani Mahama, is centered on the theme: “Transforming Education for a Sustainable Future.”
In his opening address, President Mahama offered an apology for the delayed invitation extended to the Christian Council of Ghana and the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference to take part in the ongoing discussions. The apology comes after the religious bodies raised concerns in a press statement, expressing disappointment over their exclusion from the important dialogue on education reforms.
Acknowledging the oversight, President Mahama assured the clergy that the government remains committed to inclusivity in national conversations on education. He stated, “I’m aware that the omission was very speedily remedied, but you still deserve an unqualified apology for this oversight…since you are the purveyors of God’s mercy on earth, I’m sure that you are forgiving us for this.”
The President emphasized the crucial role of religious bodies, particularly given their ownership of many schools, and underscored the importance of their participation in the forum to help shape the future of education in Ghana. “We know you are important stakeholders because you own some of the schools, and so this educational forum is important to see how we can bring everyone together,” he added.
“Let me express my sincerest apologies on behalf of the planning committee of the forum to our stakeholders of the faith-based organizations for the unpardonable omission committed in your delayed invitation to this forum,” he said in the Volta Regional capital
He added that “the omission was very speedily remedied, but you still deserve an unqualified apology for this oversight”
“And since you are the purveyors of God’s mercy on Earth, I’m sure that you have forgiven us… And we know you’re important stakeholders because you own some of the schools, and so this educational forum is important to see how we carry everybody together.”
The National Education Forum aims to address key challenges facing Ghana’s education sector, particularly in areas such as infrastructure, quality education, governance, financing, and research. The forum will also focus on discussing strategies for improving Ghana’s education system.
On Tuesday, February 4, 2025, the Minister of Education, Mr. Haruna Iddrisu, inaugurated an eight-member committee appointed by President John Dramani Mahama to organize the education stakeholder forum. The committee is chaired by Professor George K. T. Oduro, a former Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast.
The committee’s mandate is to develop a comprehensive strategy for engaging key stakeholders in the education sector and to shape a new policy framework for national education.
Their responsibilities include crafting a central theme and sub-themes to guide discussions and identifying essential stakeholders such as students, parents, teachers, researchers, civil society organizations, development partners, religious groups, political parties, chiefs, and educational institutions to contribute to the policy development process.
The committee members are as follows:
- Professor Goski Alabi, Academic and Entrepreneur
- Professor Rosemary Bosu, Senior Lecturer, University of Cape Coast
- Dr. Samuel Awuku, Education and Development Consultant
- Professor Smile Dzisi, Former Rector, Koforidua Technical University
- Mr. Ko Asare, Executive Director, Africa Education Watch
- Mr. Stephen Owusu, Renowned Educationist
- Mr. Inusah Shiraz, Education Policy Planner
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