Ghana’s First Lady, Mrs. Rebecca Akufo-Addo has lauded the Roman Ridge School in Accra for winning the highest number of medals in the 2018 edition of The Queen‘s Commonwealth Essay Competition.
“I am glad that, the number of Ghanaian students who won gold, silver and bronze medals in the competition this year, increased by over 350 per cent when compared to 2017,” Mrs. Akufo-Addo stated at the launch of the 2019 edition of The Queen‘s Commonwealth Essay Competition in Accra.
“In particular, I would like to recognise the achievement of Roman Ridge School, which had the highest number of awards than any school in Ghana. But I also want to commend all the Ghanaians who took part in the competition whether you won or not, for being trailblazers and leading the way towards Ghana’s bright future,” she added.
The launch was performed by The Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla.
She noted that life was certainly much easier when one could read and write.
“There is very little doubt that, education is a fundamental human right, and that being able to communicate, read and write is vital for social and economic development,” she said.
The First Lady said literacy allowed individuals to expand their knowledge and understanding of society.
She said the ability to read and write well, provided individuals with skills and empowers them to transform their lives.
She said highly literate populations and communities were in a far better position to develop and innovate than less literate societies.
“Of course, literacy is not simply and it is the ability to read, understand and apply the content to improve one’s life and that of society,” she said.
Mrs. Akufo-Addo said that however, despite the incredible benefits from reading, many children in Ghana today, could not read well.
“This is a real shame considering that vast amounts of information in the world are spread through written works,” she stated.
She cited the impact of newspapers, books and the internet on our daily lives.
She said anyone with limited literacy skills was virtually excluded from written information that could change their lives.
She noted that both national and global events could not be properly contextualized or analysed, making it difficult for such individuals to make informed decisions and conclusions.
The Duchess of Cornwall, who is also the Vice-Patron of the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS), lauded Ghanaian students, who had successfully participated in the 2018 edition of The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition.
She said, as a passionate believer in the power of the written words, she looks forward to presenting awards to winners of the Competition at the Buckingham Palace in London next year.
The Essay Competition was founded in 1883 which makes it the world’s oldest international competition for schools.
The competition is open to nationals or residents of all Commonwealth countries and territories.
Ghana on Friday, November 2, received the Prince of Wales and his wife for a four-day Royal visit, which is intended to strengthen the bilateral ties between the UK and Ghana.
The Royal couple paid a courtesy call on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at the Jubilee House, the Seat of Government, and conferred with Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, at the Manhyia Palace, where a durbar was organised in their honour at the weekend.
The Royal couple have already visited the Gambia, and are expected to take their final leg of a week-long visit to West Africa, to Nigeria on Tuesday, November 6.
