Plan International Ghana, within a period of four years (2016 – 2019), enrolled a total of 66,070 out-of-school children into formal schools in more than 30 districts, as part of efforts to ensure that no child is left behind in the quest to give them formal education.
A total of 8,784 out-of-school children in the districts are also currently undergoing the Complementary Basic Education (CBE) programme, which will end in June this year, and those who qualify, will be enrolled linto formal schools.
This was presented at a stakeholder review meeting on CBE, organised by the Plan International Ghana at Bimbilla in the Nanumba North Municipality of the Northern Region, to discuss support, especially for out-of-school children in the Municipality to access formal education.
The meeting, attended by some teachers, community members, representatives of the Nanumba North Municipal Directorate of Education and pupils, formed part of the Reaching and Teaching out-of-school Children (REACH) project being implemented by Plan International Ghana in collaboration with the Ghana Education Service with funding support from Educate A Child.
Similar meetings were held earlier this month at the East Mamprusi and Gushegu Municipalities, and the Karaga and Mion districts.
The REACH project is modelled on the country’s CBE, which affords out-of-school children, beyond school starting age (eight to 16 years), the opportunity to acquire basic literacy and numeracy skills within a period of nine months in their mother-tongues to facilitate their enrolment into formal schools.
Out-of-school children in more than 30 districts including Tatali-Sangule, Lawra, Nabdam, Nkwanta South, Ketu North, Kwahu South and West Gonja in the Northern, Upper West, Upper East, Oti, Volta, Eastern, and Savannah regions have benefited from the REACH project, which is in its fifth and final year.
During the meeting at Bimbilla, the stakeholders identified inadequate educational infrastructure at most communities and parents failure to prioritise education of their children as some of the reasons children of school going age were not in school.
They, therefore, came out with action plans, which included the need to ensure adequate educational infrastructure at the communities so that children do not walk long distances to access formal education, while parents provide basic educational needs of their children to motivate them to remain in school.
Alhaji Abubakari Iddi Sadick, Assistant Director in-charge of Supervision at the Nanumba North Municipal Directorate of Education, called for strengthened school-community relations for all stakeholders to work together to ensure that children of school going age were in school.
Mrs Afia Koyaja, an Opinion Leader from the Kpagturi community in the Municipality, advised parents not to burden their children with household and economic activities, which she indicated would prevent them from being regular and punctual in school.
Mr Isaac Gyasi-Ababio, Regional Coordinator, REACH project at Plan International Ghana, expressed the hope that the stakeholders would implement their action plans to ensure improved education delivery for children who transitioned from the REACH project, to formal schools.
