SADA WILL CLOSE EDUCATIONAL GAPS

SADA WILL CLOSE EDUCATIONAL GAPS May 26, 2012 BY PETER ATOGEWE WEDAM ISD-BOLGATANGA MUNICIPAL The Savannah Accelerated Development Authority [SADA] which has been given priority on government’s development agenda will not only bridge the development gap between the south and the northern parts of Ghana but will also close up the gaps between well-endowed and less endowed educational institutions across the country. Mr. Mark Owen Woyongo, regional minister for the Upper East region who made this disclosure in an address at the seventh speech and prize giving day of Awe Senior High/Technical School in Navrongo said SADA is poised to fast track development in agriculture, health, road and education among other sectors. Touching on the theme for the occasion “bridging the gap between less endowed and well endowed Senior High Schools in Ghana”, the regional minister pledged his preparedness to collaborate with the school’s authorities to push for a boarding status noting that when this is granted, academic work as well as the infrastructural base of the school will be improved significantly. He also promised to source for more laptops from the rlg Communications Company for the ICT laboratory of Awe SHS. Meanwhile, the Architectural and Engineering Services Limited [AESL] has been directed to develop estimates for the fencing of the school. Mr. Woyongo noted that quality education is expensive and therefore called on parents, school management committees, old students associations and other stakeholders to compliment the efforts of government in meeting the educational needs of the Ghanaian student. He observed that for instance, dining halls, dormitories, classrooms, staff bungalows and several other kinds of infrastructure have been constructed for various Senior High Schools across the country. He warned students against indiscipline acts such as demonstrations and vandalism on campus which often results in the destruction of valuable property which only draws back academic work to the detriment of the students themselves. Mr. Woyongo told the students, “Your purpose in this school is to be moulded into good citizens so as to be useful to yourselves and society in future” and added that no youth should indulge in violent acts during the 2012 general elections. In his report, the Headmaster of Awe Senior High/Technical School, Mr. Paul A. Achana revealed that the school which is situated at Saboro, a suburb of Navrongo began as a middle boarding school in 1954, became a n experimental junior secondary school in 1978, a senior high secondary technical school in 1992 while it got its current status as Awe Senior High/Technical School in 2007. The headmaster disclosed that as at 1992, the school had only 10 staff comprising two teaching and eight non-teaching staff with a student population of 84 who read either Agricultural Science, Visual Art or Technical programmes. However, the school now has 48 permanent teachers and a student population of 791 comprising 487 boys and 403 girls. Mr. Ahana noted that the performance of his students has improved over the years recalling that out of 105 students who sat the 2011 West African Secondary School Exam [WASSCE], 35 of them qualified for entry into tertiary institutions while the best aggregate scored was 12. He thanked government for giving the school its fair share of facilities including a 25-seater school bus, a 250 capacity girls’ dormitory block, a boy’s dormitory and a six unit classroom block which at various stages of complietion. He however called on government and philanthropists to assist the school with more infrastructure so to enable it increase student intake and run its other schedules effectively. In all, over 50 students who excelled in various academic disciplines were given assorted prizes while teachers and other staff were also honoured for dedicated service to the school.