Story: Chris Nunoo, Lawra
AN aspiring NPP parliamentary candidate in the Lawra Nandom Constituency, Mr Ambrose Dery, has said the track record of the NPP would be the basis on which the party would win this year’s elections.
That, he said, was because the record of the NPP was clear in the minds of all Ghanaians, which would be the determinant of the winner of the December 2008 elections.
He called on his constituents to refrain from acts of violence and always resort to dialogue, saying democracy was all about the exchange of different ideas and so there was no need for supporters of opposing political parties to indulge in insults and fights.
Mr Dery, who is a Minister of State at the Ministry of Justice and Attorney General, was addressing the Songtaa Nyong women’s group at Lawra in the Lawra District of the Upper West Region.
He said the northern part of the country was not immune to conflicts and so there was the need for the people to get closer to one another.
“Do not think conflicts cannot come to us, particularly those of us in the Upper West. We must, therefore, work against that because when that happens it is the women and children who will suffer most,” he noted.
Throwing more light on high food prices, Mr Dery gave the assurance that the government was working very hard to ensure that the country was secure as far as food was concerned.
He further explained that the situation was a global problem, as it concerned increases in petroleum prices.
He said with the recent discovery of oil in the country, such problems would soon be over.
Touching on the loan disbursement under the micro credit scheme, among others, the aspiring MP advised loan beneficiaries to work very hard to generate income so that they could pay back the loans for others to benefit.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
UPPER WESS REGION ...25 Years of existence (PAGE 7)
Article: Chris Nunoo
THE Upper West Region, with Wa as its capital, is 25 years old since it was created from the then Upper Region.
Despite the fact that the leadership of the country at that time heeded the cries and agitation from various quarters for the Upper Region to be divided, because the ‘Wa side’ was not seeing substantial development as compared to the ‘Bolgatanga portion’, the region, after 25 years, is still struggling in terms of development.
In the area of education, for instance, the region is not very much endowed as most school children continue to study under trees. There is also the problem of unavailability of qualified teachers to be teaching in the schools.
This and other problems notwithstanding, the region can boast of some of the very good senior high schools in the country such as the Saint Francis Zavier Seminary and the Nandom Secondary schools.
Thankfully, the region now has a university campus, which is the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies (FIDS) of the University for Development Studies (UDS), as well as a polytechnic, but these two tertiary institutions, which are very young, are still struggling to find their feet.
In the area of health, a lot more ought to be done as the main hospital in the region, likewise district hospitals, does not match the status of modern hospitals. This is because many of these hospitals do not have the facilities to meet the health needs of the people.
Furthermore, the hospitals lack personnel, particularly doctors. The same can be said of the regional police headquarters, which are said to have been built as a district police headquarters but have been serving as the regional headquarters for 25 years now.
Currently, accommodation for the police personnel in the region is a huge problem, with majority of the personnel living in rented houses, some of which are in very appalling conditions. The situation is the same with the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) , the Ghana Prisons Service (GPS) and many other important institutions, which are all working tirelessly to propel the development of the region.
Consequently, in as much as one appreciates tarring of roads in the Wa township and the construction of the famous Bamboi-Tinga roads, together with the extension of electricity to parts of the region, there is still much more to be done and not many people are satisfied with the pace of the provision of these facilities. One major problem is water, which ought to be improved and extended to other parts of the regions.
Much commendation must go to the swarm of non-governmental organisations which are, in their own way, trying to lift life in the Upper West Region from its present state to a better position as far as the nation’s development is concerned.
There is, therefore, the need for stakeholders to critically identify and assess the priorities of the region after 25 years of its existence and work to develop those areas.
Apart from the improved roads in the regional capital, all other roads in the region are in a bad state, especially the roads that lead to some of the major districts and towns. These include the Wa-Tumu, Wa-Funsi and the Wa-Lawra and Nandom roads, thereby making the movement of people and foodstuffs from one area to the other very difficult.
The area needs a modern health facility. Health workers in the region must also be given special incentives as a means to attract more health workers, especially doctors, to work in the region. Ironically, Wa, and for that matter the Upper West Region, has nothing to show as the youngest region in the country. Being one of the three poorest regions in the northern part of the country and the country at large, it has nothing to showcase with respect to economic investment.
The region’s position as the leader, as far as maternal and under five mortality in the country is concerned also calls for stringent and effective mechanisms to reverse the trend as the region celebrates its silver jubilee from tommorrow, May 23 to June 1, 2008, to facilitate the processes which would minimise the mortality rate in the shortest possible time.
All Upper Westerners, government officials and other stakeholders who have the region at heart must, in the face of the difficulties confronting the rapid development of the region, cast their minds back from when the region was created to its present state, put their act together and plan for a better future for the region. This is because like any other region, the Upper West also deserves better.
Considering the issues on the table at the time, the Upper Region was split into two, the then head of state, the late Gen. Ignatius Kutu Acheampong, started the process but his dreams were short-lived as he was overthrown. Before his overthrow, Gen. Acheampong had set the pace to divide the area, initiating the construction of bungalows and multi-purpose offices to house the various ministries, departments and agencies, including that of the Regional Co-ordinating Council. Then came former President Hilla Limann when the country went back to constitutional rule. He also resolved to continue with the process but it was slow because of some constitutional requirements.
Dr Limann was also overthrown and therefore could not succeed in completing what Gen. Kutu Acheampong started. When former President J.J. Rawlings took over power in 1981, he also saw the need to divide the region and so in January 1983, the Upper West Region was created from the Upper Region with Wa as its capital. The Upper East Region has Bolgatanga as its regional capital.
With a total land area of 18,476 square kilometres, representing 12.7 per cent of the total land area of the country, the Upper West Region shares boundaries with two countries namely Cote d'Ivoire, on the west and Burkina Faso, in the north. The present population of the region, according to the 2002 National Population Census, is 576,593, with a population density of 31 per square kilometre (national average is 77).
Before the creation of the region, the Upper West could only boast three districts, namely Wa, Sissala and Lawra districts. Presently, the region has nine districts and these are Wa East and Wa West, Nadowli, Jirapa-Lambussie, Lawra, Sissala East, Sissala West, Wa Municipal and the newly created Lambussie Karni District.
Farming is the mainstay of the people with the cultivation of yam, maize, groundnut and millet as the major food crops produced in the area. A few of the people are also into livestock farming.
Even though the region is very young, compared to others in the country, it has had at least eight regional ministers in its 25 years of existence.
With about five ethnic groups, made up of Dagarbas, Walas, Sissalas, Lobis and a small group of Kasenas, the Upper West Region could be said to be a relatively peaceful region in the country. It has also managed to produce some eminent personalities, including a former Inspector General of Police, Mr Peter Nanfuri, the Vice-President of the National House of Chiefs, Naa Banawini Sando II, the late Cardinal Peter Dery and Dr Edward Gyader, all of whom have in diverse ways contributed their quota to the development of the country.
THE Upper West Region, with Wa as its capital, is 25 years old since it was created from the then Upper Region.
Despite the fact that the leadership of the country at that time heeded the cries and agitation from various quarters for the Upper Region to be divided, because the ‘Wa side’ was not seeing substantial development as compared to the ‘Bolgatanga portion’, the region, after 25 years, is still struggling in terms of development.
In the area of education, for instance, the region is not very much endowed as most school children continue to study under trees. There is also the problem of unavailability of qualified teachers to be teaching in the schools.
This and other problems notwithstanding, the region can boast of some of the very good senior high schools in the country such as the Saint Francis Zavier Seminary and the Nandom Secondary schools.
Thankfully, the region now has a university campus, which is the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies (FIDS) of the University for Development Studies (UDS), as well as a polytechnic, but these two tertiary institutions, which are very young, are still struggling to find their feet.
In the area of health, a lot more ought to be done as the main hospital in the region, likewise district hospitals, does not match the status of modern hospitals. This is because many of these hospitals do not have the facilities to meet the health needs of the people.
Furthermore, the hospitals lack personnel, particularly doctors. The same can be said of the regional police headquarters, which are said to have been built as a district police headquarters but have been serving as the regional headquarters for 25 years now.
Currently, accommodation for the police personnel in the region is a huge problem, with majority of the personnel living in rented houses, some of which are in very appalling conditions. The situation is the same with the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) , the Ghana Prisons Service (GPS) and many other important institutions, which are all working tirelessly to propel the development of the region.
Consequently, in as much as one appreciates tarring of roads in the Wa township and the construction of the famous Bamboi-Tinga roads, together with the extension of electricity to parts of the region, there is still much more to be done and not many people are satisfied with the pace of the provision of these facilities. One major problem is water, which ought to be improved and extended to other parts of the regions.
Much commendation must go to the swarm of non-governmental organisations which are, in their own way, trying to lift life in the Upper West Region from its present state to a better position as far as the nation’s development is concerned.
There is, therefore, the need for stakeholders to critically identify and assess the priorities of the region after 25 years of its existence and work to develop those areas.
Apart from the improved roads in the regional capital, all other roads in the region are in a bad state, especially the roads that lead to some of the major districts and towns. These include the Wa-Tumu, Wa-Funsi and the Wa-Lawra and Nandom roads, thereby making the movement of people and foodstuffs from one area to the other very difficult.
The area needs a modern health facility. Health workers in the region must also be given special incentives as a means to attract more health workers, especially doctors, to work in the region. Ironically, Wa, and for that matter the Upper West Region, has nothing to show as the youngest region in the country. Being one of the three poorest regions in the northern part of the country and the country at large, it has nothing to showcase with respect to economic investment.
The region’s position as the leader, as far as maternal and under five mortality in the country is concerned also calls for stringent and effective mechanisms to reverse the trend as the region celebrates its silver jubilee from tommorrow, May 23 to June 1, 2008, to facilitate the processes which would minimise the mortality rate in the shortest possible time.
All Upper Westerners, government officials and other stakeholders who have the region at heart must, in the face of the difficulties confronting the rapid development of the region, cast their minds back from when the region was created to its present state, put their act together and plan for a better future for the region. This is because like any other region, the Upper West also deserves better.
Considering the issues on the table at the time, the Upper Region was split into two, the then head of state, the late Gen. Ignatius Kutu Acheampong, started the process but his dreams were short-lived as he was overthrown. Before his overthrow, Gen. Acheampong had set the pace to divide the area, initiating the construction of bungalows and multi-purpose offices to house the various ministries, departments and agencies, including that of the Regional Co-ordinating Council. Then came former President Hilla Limann when the country went back to constitutional rule. He also resolved to continue with the process but it was slow because of some constitutional requirements.
Dr Limann was also overthrown and therefore could not succeed in completing what Gen. Kutu Acheampong started. When former President J.J. Rawlings took over power in 1981, he also saw the need to divide the region and so in January 1983, the Upper West Region was created from the Upper Region with Wa as its capital. The Upper East Region has Bolgatanga as its regional capital.
With a total land area of 18,476 square kilometres, representing 12.7 per cent of the total land area of the country, the Upper West Region shares boundaries with two countries namely Cote d'Ivoire, on the west and Burkina Faso, in the north. The present population of the region, according to the 2002 National Population Census, is 576,593, with a population density of 31 per square kilometre (national average is 77).
Before the creation of the region, the Upper West could only boast three districts, namely Wa, Sissala and Lawra districts. Presently, the region has nine districts and these are Wa East and Wa West, Nadowli, Jirapa-Lambussie, Lawra, Sissala East, Sissala West, Wa Municipal and the newly created Lambussie Karni District.
Farming is the mainstay of the people with the cultivation of yam, maize, groundnut and millet as the major food crops produced in the area. A few of the people are also into livestock farming.
Even though the region is very young, compared to others in the country, it has had at least eight regional ministers in its 25 years of existence.
With about five ethnic groups, made up of Dagarbas, Walas, Sissalas, Lobis and a small group of Kasenas, the Upper West Region could be said to be a relatively peaceful region in the country. It has also managed to produce some eminent personalities, including a former Inspector General of Police, Mr Peter Nanfuri, the Vice-President of the National House of Chiefs, Naa Banawini Sando II, the late Cardinal Peter Dery and Dr Edward Gyader, all of whom have in diverse ways contributed their quota to the development of the country.
COTTON FARMERS PETITION GOVERNMENT (PAGE 47)
STORY: Chris Nunoo, Wa
Cotton farmers in the three northern regions of the country have petitioned the government to act quickly to save the cotton industry from collapsing.
In a petition presented to the Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hickah Benson, the farmers, who described cotton as the ‘white gold’ of northern Ghana, catalogued a number of factors hindering the production of cotton.
The petition, which is to be forwarded to President Kufuor, stated that given the required attention, cotton would become a viable cash crop for the country.
Signed by Mr Mohammed Adam Nashiru, the National Secretary of the Ghana Cotton Farmers Association, the petition raised the issues of the high cost of production and the unfair world trade, which favours countries of the developed world.
The farmers appealed to the government to support them this season by offering free mass spraying of cotton.
The farmers also stressed the need for the government to encourage more credit schemes, and the various district and municipal assemblies to assist them with credit facilities.
The group further appealed for subsidies on farm inputs, pointing out that cotton cultivation was gradually becoming unattractive and as such some of the farmers were considering cultivating other crops.
Mr Benson said the government was aware of the potential of cotton.
That, he said, accounted for the inclusion of cotton the fact cultivation in the special initiatives of the President.
Mr Hickah Benson acknowledged that there were problems with the cotton industry but said the government would try to address the concerns of the farmers.
The regional minister commended the farmers for the peaceful means they had adopted to channel their concerns.
Cotton farmers in the three northern regions of the country have petitioned the government to act quickly to save the cotton industry from collapsing.
In a petition presented to the Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hickah Benson, the farmers, who described cotton as the ‘white gold’ of northern Ghana, catalogued a number of factors hindering the production of cotton.
The petition, which is to be forwarded to President Kufuor, stated that given the required attention, cotton would become a viable cash crop for the country.
Signed by Mr Mohammed Adam Nashiru, the National Secretary of the Ghana Cotton Farmers Association, the petition raised the issues of the high cost of production and the unfair world trade, which favours countries of the developed world.
The farmers appealed to the government to support them this season by offering free mass spraying of cotton.
The farmers also stressed the need for the government to encourage more credit schemes, and the various district and municipal assemblies to assist them with credit facilities.
The group further appealed for subsidies on farm inputs, pointing out that cotton cultivation was gradually becoming unattractive and as such some of the farmers were considering cultivating other crops.
Mr Benson said the government was aware of the potential of cotton.
That, he said, accounted for the inclusion of cotton the fact cultivation in the special initiatives of the President.
Mr Hickah Benson acknowledged that there were problems with the cotton industry but said the government would try to address the concerns of the farmers.
The regional minister commended the farmers for the peaceful means they had adopted to channel their concerns.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
PLAN GHANA ENCOURAGES DRY SEASON FARMING...In Sissala District (PAGE 20)
Story: Chris Nunoo, Pulima
THE provision of dams by Plan Ghana, an international non-governmental organisation (NGO), through its livelihood empowerment programme, to the people of the Sissala District of the Upper-West Region, has been described by the farmers as a lifetime investment, which has brought a new lease of life to their families and households.
They said until the dams were constructed, all they had to do during the dry season was to idle about, sit under trees or probably go round picking firewood.
Barely three months after the dams were formally handed over to the communities, lands around them had been taken over by the farmers for the cultivation of fresh vegetables, including okro, cabbage, carrots and onions.
The dam sites are gradually picking up at market centres as many people including commuters who drive through the towns, pass by the farms to purchase some of the fresh produce.
This, notwithstanding, the dams also serve as a source of drinking water for livestock while those who are engaged in fish farming are also making very good use of them.
These came to light when the Daily Graphic paid a familiarisation visit to the farms of some of the beneficiary communities and interacted with the farmers.
The beneficiary communities, which include Nyimati, Pulima, Buoti and Jefissi, expressed appreciation to Plan Ghana for the project and asked for more of such interventions.
“The dams have actually brought life to our communities. Before the construction of the dams, we had to wait for the rains before we could work on the farms,” some of the farmers told the Daily Graphic.
The farmers also said they now had enough produce to send home for domestic use.
Speaking in separate interviews, some of the farmers — Madam Talata Yakubu, Madam Mamoro Sankoro, Madam Adisa Ali Hantong and Madam Mariama Sumani Haduon — said currently, they could heave a sigh of relief.
They showered praises on Plan Ghana for the initiative, stressing that “now we can eat well and put some money in our pockets as well”.
“The dams have really helped us, but for the dams we would have been idling about, sitting under trees or gathering fire wood,” they said, adding that “with the construction of the dams, we’ll be busy always working on our farms”.
As part of assistance to the farmers, field officers of Plan Ghana intermittently pay visits to the farms to study at first-hand what the farmers are doing.
They also take the farmers through some form of orientation as to the type of seedlings they must sow and how to plant the seedlings.
Plan Ghana is also taking measures to organise special training programmes for the farmers on the proper usage of the dams.
THE provision of dams by Plan Ghana, an international non-governmental organisation (NGO), through its livelihood empowerment programme, to the people of the Sissala District of the Upper-West Region, has been described by the farmers as a lifetime investment, which has brought a new lease of life to their families and households.
They said until the dams were constructed, all they had to do during the dry season was to idle about, sit under trees or probably go round picking firewood.
Barely three months after the dams were formally handed over to the communities, lands around them had been taken over by the farmers for the cultivation of fresh vegetables, including okro, cabbage, carrots and onions.
The dam sites are gradually picking up at market centres as many people including commuters who drive through the towns, pass by the farms to purchase some of the fresh produce.
This, notwithstanding, the dams also serve as a source of drinking water for livestock while those who are engaged in fish farming are also making very good use of them.
These came to light when the Daily Graphic paid a familiarisation visit to the farms of some of the beneficiary communities and interacted with the farmers.
The beneficiary communities, which include Nyimati, Pulima, Buoti and Jefissi, expressed appreciation to Plan Ghana for the project and asked for more of such interventions.
“The dams have actually brought life to our communities. Before the construction of the dams, we had to wait for the rains before we could work on the farms,” some of the farmers told the Daily Graphic.
The farmers also said they now had enough produce to send home for domestic use.
Speaking in separate interviews, some of the farmers — Madam Talata Yakubu, Madam Mamoro Sankoro, Madam Adisa Ali Hantong and Madam Mariama Sumani Haduon — said currently, they could heave a sigh of relief.
They showered praises on Plan Ghana for the initiative, stressing that “now we can eat well and put some money in our pockets as well”.
“The dams have really helped us, but for the dams we would have been idling about, sitting under trees or gathering fire wood,” they said, adding that “with the construction of the dams, we’ll be busy always working on our farms”.
As part of assistance to the farmers, field officers of Plan Ghana intermittently pay visits to the farms to study at first-hand what the farmers are doing.
They also take the farmers through some form of orientation as to the type of seedlings they must sow and how to plant the seedlings.
Plan Ghana is also taking measures to organise special training programmes for the farmers on the proper usage of the dams.
Monday, May 19, 2008
66 PRISON OFFICERS HONOURED (SPREAD)
Story: Chris Nunoo, Wa
SIXTY-six officers of the Ghana Prisons Services (GPS) in the Upper West Region have been decorated with golden jubilee medals at a ceremony in Wa.
The awards were given to the officers during the 51st independence celebration of Ghana’s independence, in recognition of their sacrifices to the country.
The Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hickah Benson, who was the Guest of Honour, said the awards must be a springboard for hard work.
Mr Hickah mentioned the introduction of distance learning for inmates as one of the programmes aimed at equipping them for life after prison.
Touching on this year’s election, the regional minister urged the officers to help ensure violence-free and fair elections in December. He also advised them to psyche up for the job at hand.
For his part, the Regional Commander of the Prisons Service, Mr Joseph Kwaw Yankson, appealed for improvement in accommodation facilities for the officers in the region.
SIXTY-six officers of the Ghana Prisons Services (GPS) in the Upper West Region have been decorated with golden jubilee medals at a ceremony in Wa.
The awards were given to the officers during the 51st independence celebration of Ghana’s independence, in recognition of their sacrifices to the country.
The Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hickah Benson, who was the Guest of Honour, said the awards must be a springboard for hard work.
Mr Hickah mentioned the introduction of distance learning for inmates as one of the programmes aimed at equipping them for life after prison.
Touching on this year’s election, the regional minister urged the officers to help ensure violence-free and fair elections in December. He also advised them to psyche up for the job at hand.
For his part, the Regional Commander of the Prisons Service, Mr Joseph Kwaw Yankson, appealed for improvement in accommodation facilities for the officers in the region.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
WONDER YAM UNITES COMMUNITY (MIRROR, PAGE 25)
From Chris Nunoo, Manden near Bole
Call it the land of the wonder yam and you would not be wrong. That is the reality at Manden, a farming community 15 kilometres from Bole in the Bole District of the Northern Region.
Now known as the 'Sedu Bile’ yam, it found its way into Manden during the lean season of 1984 when one Alhaji Sedu Bile, a native of the town, returned from Cote d’Ivoire after a visit to that country. Today both Alhaji Sedu Bile and the ‘Tembi’ yam which is also referred to as the wonder yam, are household names in the Manden community and beyond. Wonder yam, because to the people of the community the arrival of the special yam species marked the end of hunger in the town.
The yam is also said to have special qualities compared to other yams. It is good for human consumption and also industrial use.
Currently, a festival in honour of Alhaji Sedu Bile coupled with the commemoration of the arrival of the wonder yam into Manden has been instituted and it is celebrated in April every year. It has been the only festival of the people of Manden instituted over the past six years.
Derived from a species known as the ‘Tembi’ yam of Cote d’Ivoire in 1983, the yam was said to have been developed by an Ivorian agricultural scientist and was brought to that country. Alhaji Sedu Bile went to Bona in Cote d’Ivoire with a team of dancers known as Sator dancers from Manden to grace a wedding ceremony. There they learned about the yam.
Alhaji Sedu Bile had been harvesting thousands of the yam since his return from Cote d’Ivoire and was adjudged the best regional farmer at the time.
Then came the time to market the yams. With the help of other prominent farmers, Alhaji Seidu Bile started transporting his produce to Nakwebi, Tuna and surrounding villages in the Northern Region and beyond.
Consequently, ‘Sedu Bile’ spread all over the area with other regions nicknaming it their own way. Now the yam is being exported to neighbouring countries.
Speaking to The Mirror, the people of Mandari, led by Mr E.K. Yakubu, said there had never been hunger in Manden since the arrival of the yam. They said the yam had attracted a lot of the youth to go into farming. The only problem they face, though, is how to market the produce after harvesting. The people say the yam has united their communities the more as they see themselves as one people with the yam as the unifying factor.
Call it the land of the wonder yam and you would not be wrong. That is the reality at Manden, a farming community 15 kilometres from Bole in the Bole District of the Northern Region.
Now known as the 'Sedu Bile’ yam, it found its way into Manden during the lean season of 1984 when one Alhaji Sedu Bile, a native of the town, returned from Cote d’Ivoire after a visit to that country. Today both Alhaji Sedu Bile and the ‘Tembi’ yam which is also referred to as the wonder yam, are household names in the Manden community and beyond. Wonder yam, because to the people of the community the arrival of the special yam species marked the end of hunger in the town.
The yam is also said to have special qualities compared to other yams. It is good for human consumption and also industrial use.
Currently, a festival in honour of Alhaji Sedu Bile coupled with the commemoration of the arrival of the wonder yam into Manden has been instituted and it is celebrated in April every year. It has been the only festival of the people of Manden instituted over the past six years.
Derived from a species known as the ‘Tembi’ yam of Cote d’Ivoire in 1983, the yam was said to have been developed by an Ivorian agricultural scientist and was brought to that country. Alhaji Sedu Bile went to Bona in Cote d’Ivoire with a team of dancers known as Sator dancers from Manden to grace a wedding ceremony. There they learned about the yam.
Alhaji Sedu Bile had been harvesting thousands of the yam since his return from Cote d’Ivoire and was adjudged the best regional farmer at the time.
Then came the time to market the yams. With the help of other prominent farmers, Alhaji Seidu Bile started transporting his produce to Nakwebi, Tuna and surrounding villages in the Northern Region and beyond.
Consequently, ‘Sedu Bile’ spread all over the area with other regions nicknaming it their own way. Now the yam is being exported to neighbouring countries.
Speaking to The Mirror, the people of Mandari, led by Mr E.K. Yakubu, said there had never been hunger in Manden since the arrival of the yam. They said the yam had attracted a lot of the youth to go into farming. The only problem they face, though, is how to market the produce after harvesting. The people say the yam has united their communities the more as they see themselves as one people with the yam as the unifying factor.
Friday, May 16, 2008
ROLE OF CHURCH IN EDUCATIONAL REFORM CRUCIAL (PAGE 11)
Story: Chris Nunoo, Wa
THE Vice-Dean of Students of the University for Development Studies (UDS), Wa Campus, Dr Clifford Maasole, has called for the institution of realistic mechanisms under the new educational reform to impart to students not only academic knowledge, but also skills, particularly in the area of information technology.
That, he said, was the only means to groom the youth of today into meeting the challenges of the new millennium.
Addressing the annual general meeting of the Wa Catholic Diocesan Priests Association (WADPA) in Wa, in the Upper West Region, Dr Maasole said the role of the church in the new educational reform was very crucial.
The meeting was on the theme: “The church and state partnership in implementing the new education reform.”
“School education today must let the youth acquire something in knowledge and skills in information and technology if they are to prosper in the new millennium,” he stated.
He, therefore, stressed the need for the total involvement of all stakeholders in education, if the country was to achieve a middle-level income status by the year 2015.
Dr Maasole deplored the system where major policy decisions, such as the new educational reform, were done solely at the top and imposed on the implementors, stressing that when that happened, “they would accept the reform, but not the impetus for the reform”.
On ethnic conflict in the entire northern part of the country, Dr Maasole emphasised the need for all to help fight the war against violence.
He said violence was doing more harm to the entire social fabric of the northern society.
“These conflicts must be addressed, if we wished to be part of the new reform,” he said.
The Catholic Bishop of Wa, Most Rev. Paul Bemile, pointed out the role of the Catholic Church in the development of education since independence, and stressed the need for all to respect the religious freedoms and personal interests of students of other faith.
Bishop Bemile also gave a hint about the preparation of a new syllabus by the Catholic Bishops Conference under the reform, and urged teachers in the Catholic schools to rise up to the challenges of the time.
The Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hickah Benson, in a speech read on his behalf, commended the Catholic Church for its role in the development of education in the region and the country at large.
He expressed grave concern about the prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS in the region as against the national prevalence rate, saying the prevalence rate in the region was higher than that of the entire nation.
For his part, the President of WADPA, Rev. Matthew Tuuronsong, urged the media to continue to stand by the truth at all times, even in the face of all opposition.
He called for the establishment of a new teacher training college to train more teachers for the region.
THE Vice-Dean of Students of the University for Development Studies (UDS), Wa Campus, Dr Clifford Maasole, has called for the institution of realistic mechanisms under the new educational reform to impart to students not only academic knowledge, but also skills, particularly in the area of information technology.
That, he said, was the only means to groom the youth of today into meeting the challenges of the new millennium.
Addressing the annual general meeting of the Wa Catholic Diocesan Priests Association (WADPA) in Wa, in the Upper West Region, Dr Maasole said the role of the church in the new educational reform was very crucial.
The meeting was on the theme: “The church and state partnership in implementing the new education reform.”
“School education today must let the youth acquire something in knowledge and skills in information and technology if they are to prosper in the new millennium,” he stated.
He, therefore, stressed the need for the total involvement of all stakeholders in education, if the country was to achieve a middle-level income status by the year 2015.
Dr Maasole deplored the system where major policy decisions, such as the new educational reform, were done solely at the top and imposed on the implementors, stressing that when that happened, “they would accept the reform, but not the impetus for the reform”.
On ethnic conflict in the entire northern part of the country, Dr Maasole emphasised the need for all to help fight the war against violence.
He said violence was doing more harm to the entire social fabric of the northern society.
“These conflicts must be addressed, if we wished to be part of the new reform,” he said.
The Catholic Bishop of Wa, Most Rev. Paul Bemile, pointed out the role of the Catholic Church in the development of education since independence, and stressed the need for all to respect the religious freedoms and personal interests of students of other faith.
Bishop Bemile also gave a hint about the preparation of a new syllabus by the Catholic Bishops Conference under the reform, and urged teachers in the Catholic schools to rise up to the challenges of the time.
The Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hickah Benson, in a speech read on his behalf, commended the Catholic Church for its role in the development of education in the region and the country at large.
He expressed grave concern about the prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS in the region as against the national prevalence rate, saying the prevalence rate in the region was higher than that of the entire nation.
For his part, the President of WADPA, Rev. Matthew Tuuronsong, urged the media to continue to stand by the truth at all times, even in the face of all opposition.
He called for the establishment of a new teacher training college to train more teachers for the region.
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