Sekondi: 22 underserved basic schools receive 50,000 free exercise books, pens

Twenty-two Basic Schools in underserved communities within the Sekondi Constituency have received 50,000 free exercise books from the NDC Parliamentary Candidate, Blay Armah Nyameke.

Speaking to Channel One TV News at one of the presentations at Nkontompo Ekow Nketsia Basic School which benefited from 3,150 of the free exercise books, Mr Blay said the rationale for the support which also includes 30,000 pens and 15,000 pencils is to support the education of students from such underprivileged communities in Sekondi and 10,000 students are expected to benefit.

“I grew up in Sekondi and fortunately and unfortunately, I went to a private school and I started my education in the primary government sector. But after coming back, when I look around all the schools in Sekondi, the buildings are dilapidated, some of them have fallen off, the walls have fallen off. I feel that those amenities do not give a better incentive to the children to come to school and learn and learn well.

“Secondly, our parents, you know, the hardship in Ghana is so much, especially in secondary, where the only business in secondary is about selling, buying and fishing. With my little experience, at the beginning of every year, parents struggle to buy books, pens and pencils. So I have decided as a matter of policy in collaboration with my [next] NDC government that we are going to support the parents with their books. At the moment, we are providing 50,000 exercise books, 30,000 pens and 15,000 pencils,” he explained.

The Sekondi NDC Parliamentary Candidate while hinting at plans to expand the support the next academic year also expressed expectations of the positive impact on education in Sekondi.

“Next academic year, we are increasing it to 100,000. We are hoping that within the next two to three years, no child in Secondary will buy books or pens and pencils for school. We are going to relieve all the parents from buying exercise books and pencils.

“The number of students within the constituency attending the government schools, basic schools, is 10,000. So that is why we started with 50,000 so that each kid is going to get five exercise books each and then four pens each and those writing with pencils are going to get three pencils each,” he assured

George Eshun, Headteacher of Nkontompo Ekow Nketsia Basic School, one of the beneficiary schools told Channel One TV News the donation is timely since most students come to school without exercise books, affecting academic work.

“The books have come at the right time, and I’m very sure that it’s going to be of great help to the students because books have been one of the challenges that the children have been facing. On the part of the parents, they can’t buy. it’s going to help the children to at least do a lot of exercises, that’s going to help them to move forward to the next class.

“It was a problem, because you attend to a pupil or a student, and he’s using one exercise book for more than one subject, which is not allowed in our educational system. It’s going to serve them a great purpose, of which it will help them to improve their academic standard of the school,” he thanked.

The Headteacher while also raising concerns with the limited classroom chairs and textbooks called on the government to quickly come to their rescue.

Besides Nkotompo Kow Nketsia Basic School, other schools benefiting the 50,000 free exercise books, 30,000 pens and 15,000 pencils include Kweikuma Getthsemane M/A Basic School, Kweikuma STMA Basic School, Nana Anaisie M/A Basic School Adiembra, Nana Kobina Gyan Basic School Adiembra, St. Ann’s JHS

Other schools include Aggrey Memorial Basic School, Ekuasi Methodist Basic School, Anglican Complex School, Well Road Basic School, Boundary Road Methodist School, Boundary Road STMA, Wesley JHS, Rev. Griffeon Memorial, Catholic Basic School, AME Zion Basic School, Salvation Army/Gyandu, St. Peter’s Basic School, St. Peter’s Anglican Primary, and St. Peter’s Anglican JHS.

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