By: Jones Anlimah
The Minister for Education, Mr. Yaw Osei Adutwum has embarked on a fact finding tour of some flood affected communities as a result of the spillage of the Akosombo dam.
The tour was to find a lasting solution to the educational needs and challenges of vulnerable children and the welfare of teachers whose lives have been disrupted by the devastating floods.
For over two weeks now some children in the affected communities especially Mepe in the North Tongu District of the Volta region have been denied their educational right because of the floods as a result of the spillage from the Akosombo dam.
Schools have been sub-merged while others are now being used as camps to temporary house some victims of the floods.
Additionally, some teachers have also been affected directly or indirectly making it impossible for them to undertake their duties.
46 basic schools and one senior high school have so far been affected and are not operating. This translates into over 14,700 school children from 11 educational circuits being denied education due to the flooding.
The fact finding tour by the Educational Minister, Mr. Yaw Osei Adutwum was to assess the extent of damage and evaluate the immediate and long-term needs of the educational needs and challenges in the affected areas and how to best come out with lasting solutions.
The Educational Minister was accompanied by some members of the Select Committee on Education, the Deputy Education Minister, Reverend John Ntim Fordjour, the Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa and officials from the National Disaster Management Organisation, (NADMO).
The team visited the ‘safe haven’ camp at St Kizito Senior High Technical School at Mepe where some level of teaching and learning under trees as makeshifts classrooms was ongoing.
The Education Minister and his entourage donated some learning materials to the students and pupils and assured them that government was committed to ensuring that their education was not compromised due to the disaster.
“Today we want to wish you well and see how best we can support you and your parents to one day go back home and live a normal life from what you are experiencing now. So we will make sure we bring some more reading books, pens, pencils and other things…,” he assured the students.
Issues that came up at an interaction with some stakeholders at Mepe in the North Tongu district of the Volta region included teacher’s safety and welfare to enable them go back to classrooms.
“When the basic school teachers were performing their legitimate duty, then the flood came so they were not able to pack a single item. As we talk now teachers are now wearing borrowed clothes. Some teachers also took loans to pay for their rents. Now the entire house is in water. I am a living testimony. Where are they going to stay to continue this assignment they are supposed to do.”, Mr. Agor Mordzifa Cephas, a teacher from the St. Kizito SHTS queried.
The Minister for Education Mr. Yaw Osei Adutwum said the well-being and education of children in Ghana are of paramount importance to the government. He added that government is committed to mitigating the adverse effects of the flood disaster on education and the welfare of teachers whose lives have been disrupted by the devastating floods.
According to him, his goal is to find lasting solutions that will guarantee access to quality education in the affected communities.
“We are looking at short, medium and long term solutions to the challenges but as an Education Minister, my primary purpose for this visit is how best do I bring normalcy to the teaching and learning process. We have seen enough and we will go back and then look at what we can do to bring learning to our community, parents and to our students”, Mr Adutwum noted.
The Education Minister also donated 450 bags of rice and some packets and sachets of water to NADMO for onward distribution to affected flood victims.