President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has appealed to world leaders to maximise investment in education to ensure no child is left behind in the human resource development.
Requisite infrastructure, teaching and learning aids ought to be provided at all levels to facilitate access to quality education to empower the youth for meaningful lives, he said.
President Nana Akufo-Addo, addressing world leaders at the 2024 United Nations (UN) General Assembly, New York, elaborated on the transformative power of education.
“The decisions we make today will shape the future of our world,” he noted, urging global leaders to act with courage and compassion to ensure that no one was left behind.
Ghana has chalked significant successes in educational development under the Nana Akufo-Addo-led Administration, with his ‘Free Senior High School (SHS)’ initiative transforming the lives of some 5.7 million youth over the last seven years.
Additionally, there has been some 38 per cent quantum leap in the number of Ghanaian primary two pupils who can read.
As of 2015, only two per cent of primary two pupils were found to either read or understand English or any Ghanaian language properly, according to an Early Grade Reading Assessment Report commissioned by the Ghana Education Service (GES).
President Nana Akufo-Addo noted that the visionary leadership provided by his Administration had helped to effectively tackle inequality in education, while building a brighter future for all.
Launched in 2017, the Free SHS policy, aimed at removing financial barriers to secondary education in Ghana, has been covering the full cost of secondary education for all eligible students.
This has significantly expanded access to schooling for children from all walks of life, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The 2020 performance of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) candidates revealed that the average performance of the Ghanaian candidates was the best when compared with WASSCE results within the past six years, with all four core subjects (English, Mathematics, Integrated Science and Social Studies) recording above 50 per cent pass marks.
The performances in Mathematics and English Language were the highest, recording 65.71 and 57.34 per cent, respectively, while Social Studies and Integrated Science recorded 64.31 and 52.53 per cent, respectively.
“This is just the beginning,” the President said, expressing his belief that access to education should not be limited by geography or circumstance.
“We need a global commitment to ensure that every child, no matter where they are born, has access to quality education. A world where children are left unprepared for the challenges ahead is not a just world.”
GNA