Accept postings to rural areas - Minister appeals to teachers

The Upper West Regional Minister, Charles Lwanga Puozuing, has appealed to teachers, particularly the newly qualified, to accept postings to the rural areas where their services are most needed.

He said the future of Ghana’s basic education “rests on the shoulders of competent and well-trained teachers, which is why the government has pledged to transform teacher education as aligned in the NDC’s manifesto.

“We recognise that the quality of teachers directly impacts the quality of the education system, which is why we are committed to improving teacher education across the country,” Mr Puozuing explained. 

Plea

Speaking at the ninth congregation of the Nusrat Jahan Ahmadiyya (NJA) College of Education in Wa, Mr Puozuing reiterated the call on teachers to accept postings to underserved rural areas as “you might be better off with the bungalows and other incentives to enable you to stay comfortable.”

The students

He said the government would introduce incentives for teachers who “accept posting to rural communities, bridging the gap in educational disparities across the country.”

The regional minister said there were a lot of schools in the deprived communities that needed teachers to teach the children from those communities to explore their hidden talents and to help build the country.

Commitment

He said education remained the cornerstone of the country’s development and teacher education was central to the aspirations of the country.

Mr Puozuing said the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government “understands that education cannot thrive without significant investment in teacher trainees.”

As part of the commitment of the NDC, he said the government would complete the transition of all Colleges of Education into fully fledged degree awarding institutions.

In all, a total of 274 graduated with a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) from the college with seven obtaining First Class honours.

They were the second batch of first-degree students to have graduated from the college.

Charge

The principal of the college, Shani Osman, said the college had, over the years, shaped its graduates into dedicated, resilient and knowledge-driven individuals who become agents of change.

He, thus, charged the graduates to go into the world and impart the values they had gained from the college to their students and the future of the country.

Mr Osman encouraged them to build on their achievement and strive for even greater academic success.

He said the college currently had a population of 1,421 students made up of 603 males and 818 females.