The education system in Ghana is divided into three parts: basic, secondary and tertiary education. There are 18,530 primary schools, 8,850 junior secondary schools, 900 senior secondary schools, 28 training colleges, 20 technical institutions, four diploma-awarding institutions, six public universities and over 10 private universities.
Most children in Ghana have easy access to primary and secondary education. However, the costs associated with receiving an education, such as school fees, uniforms, school supplies and equipment, continues to make education a problem that the government must deal with. Additionally, the pressure for children to work in order to support their families disrupts their ability to complete education.
Over the years, the literacy rate has risen and the number of children out of school has dropped, thanks to efforts Ghana’s government has made to permanently benefit the education program.
One program that has been implemented is The Ghana School Feeding Program. The objectives of this program are to reduce hunger and malnutrition, increase school enrollment, attendance and retention, and improve domestic food production in deprived communities of the country. The goal is to provide children attending public primary schools with a free meal, prepared by locally grown farmers.
By providing school children with a free meal, the program provides children and their parents with an incentive to both attend and stay in school. Additionally, this program helps the domestic Ghanaian government by supporting local businesses and farms.
Additionally, USAID has an education development program in Ghana that seeks to, “Improve reading performance in Primary School.” According to USAID, the three outlined objectives in the Education Development Objective are: enhanced reading and math instruction, strengthened basic education management and increased government accountability and transparency.
USAID also supports efforts to increase the involvement of parents and community members in advocating for a higher quality of education.
This program makes a huge impact on Ghana’s education because it works to improve the root of the problem. Through targeting schools and government as the platform for change, the program is making adjustments that will make a significant and permanent impact to the education program, not just alleviate the symptoms of a poor education program.
Overall, the programs that have been implemented in order to better the education in Ghana have reflected important changes and the country is moving in a positive direction. These programs and their advancement for education in Ghana can serve as examples for other countries where educational programs need improvement.
– Julia Arredondo
Photo: Flickr