Minister inspects emergency projects

Dr Joseph S. Annan, Deputy Minister of Education in-charge of Tertiary Education, on Friday inspected the Quick Build Emergency Senior High School classroom projects in four schools in the Akuapim North District. The project which started some few months ago, forms part of government’s attempt to resolve the over crowding experienced by Senior High Schools at the beginning of the academic year. The schools are; the Okuapeman Senior High School, Benkum Senior High School, Nifa Senior High School and Methodist Senior High School, Mamfe Akuapim. The Minister whose first point of call was the Okuapeman Senior Schools inspected various projects in the schools including a new six classroom block built from local bricks meant to decongest the overcrowding in the form one streams. Messrs Evensolomon Ethnic Homes, contractors for the project, promised to complete the work by the end of February. At the Benkum Senior High School, the Minister also inspected another six classroom block project built by the same contractor. He urged the contractor to increase the pace of work for the project to be completed on time so that form one students who have been put in crowded classrooms can make use of it. At the Nifa Senior High School, Dr Annan expressed concern about the numerous abandoned projects initiated by previous governments in the school. He said expressed the government’s commitment to ensure that such projects would be completed and put to use. Mr Alex Peter Acquah, Headmaster of Nifa Secondary School, said a three storey 18 unit classroom block which started in 1976 but roofed some months ago had been abandoned. He said the completion of that project could have helped in resolving the problem of overcrowding among the form one students. According to him, a GETfund project for the construction of a Science Resource Centre and a four storey teacher’s bungalow project had been abandoned. He said because most of the teachers do not have accommodation on campus, they normally get to the school late and as such the students do not benefit from their expertise. At the Methodist Senior High School, Mamfe, Mrs Alice Prempeh Forjour, Assistant Headmistress of the School, appealed to the government to provide the school with a Science Laboratory to ensure effective teaching of science courses in the school. Dr Annan briefing the press at the end of the tour, expressed satisfaction at the level of provision infrastructure in the various schools and promised the ministry’s commitment to ensure that the all abandoned projects were completed. He said the local bricks used in the construction of the various classrooms are cheaper in terms of cost as they do not require painting and that the raw materials are easily available.