Education

Our children must have SHS education-Hajia Alima

The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hajia Alima Mahama, has encouraged parents in rural communities to take advantage of government’s Free Senior High School (Free SHS) programme to enroll their children.

“The important thing is that our children must all have education. Senior high school is so important. If you complete Junior High School and stop, you have not done anything, you have to continue and I encourage parents to make sure that they make use of schools, and get their children educated,” she said.

Hajia Mahama said this when she interacted with teachers and students of the Langbinsi SHS, in the Gambaga municipality of the North East Region, after commissioning a rural electrification project at Tunni.

The Langbinsi SHS was established by the minister in September 2019, as a social intervention to reduce the rate of school dropouts among children in the area, who could not further their education after Junior High School. 

The minister, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Nalerigu-Gambaga Constituency, was in the company of Mr Danladi Abdul-Nashir, the Gambaga Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Fuseini  Nurudeen, the North East Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and other regional and constituency executives of the party.

Hajia Mahama said education, especially for the girl child was important, and expressed delight about the population of girls in the school. “I am happy that at least we have 68 girls out of the 151 students, I want to see many of you progress to the university level,” she told the girls.

She reminded the second year students, who were the first batch to be enrolled that, “Next year you will be writing your West African Senior School Certificate Examination, and that is the time you have to prove that the investment in this school is worth it. You have to study hard to make everybody proud.”

The MP recalled that she established the Gambaga Girls SHS in 2008 with a population of 25 students in an old Public Works Department office, and said, “Today the student population is 1,199, so do not look at the facility, more will come.”

Hajia Mahama, who constructed a three-unit classroom and administration blocks, and kitchen for the school, said she would construct another three-unit classroom block, in readiness for admissions in September.

 “We will follow up to the Ghana Education Service, Ministry of Education and GETFund for them to look at possibly putting up boarding facilities.”

Mr Daniel Aloriwer Bukari, the headmaster of the Langbinsi SHS thanked the minister for her vision for the school, and said the student population was growing steadily, and needed infrastructure to accommodate them and promote academic exercise. GNA

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