Ghana has adopted thematic action track two of the Transforming Education Summit (TES) as the fulcrum for its new educational reforms.
The track twois one of the five tracks constituted as the key levers outlined by the summit for over 154 countries across the globe to focus on the transformation of their education systems.
They are; Inclusive, equitable, safe and healthy schools, Learning and Skills for life, work and sustainable development, Teachers, teaching and the teaching profession, Digital learning and transformation, and Financing of education.
Addressing the media in Accra on Thursday, the Director-General of the Institute for Educational Planning and Administration (IEPA) at the University of Cape Coast (UCC), Dr Michael Boakye-Yiadom, said as part of the country’s commitment to the chosen track, the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, would be making statement at the summit next week in New York.
The track two, which entailsLearning and Skills for life, work and sustainable development, would ensure that people are not only equipped with the skills of numeracy and literacy, but trained to be hands-on to create by themselves.
He explained that the TES was a key initiative of Our Common Agenda (OCA)which was launched in 2021 by the United Nations (UN) General-Secretary, Antonio Guterres.
According to Dr Boakye-Yiadom, the National Convenor of TES, the summit was intended to bring together global, national and local education stakeholders and actors to dialogue on the types of coordinated actions needed to reverse the slide in progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4.
He explained that the summit provided a unique opportunity to elevate education to the top of the global political agenda and to mobilise action, ambition, solidarity and solutions to recover pandemic-related learning losses through the five thematic action tracks.
The Convenor said a number of stakeholder consultations in collaboration with other development partners took place on a number of occasions leading to the country’s resolve on Thematic Action Track 2.
He noted that the general consensus was that, to transform the future of education in the country, emphasis must be placed on foundational learning of basic literacy and numeracy and education for sustainable development, and skills for employment and entrepreneurship.
“Many children who drop-out or graduate from the education system report not having relevant skills needed to be successful in the labour market to navigate social challenges and contribute to national development,” he emphasised.
Dr Boakye-Yiadom said there was the need for urgent and decisive action where learning levels were low to ensure all children, including the most marginalised, develop foundational learning.
This he said, apart from building them up, would help them realise their full potentials.
Dr Boakye-Yiadom said once the President makes the commitment at the Summit scheduled between September 16 and 19, Ghanaians must take keen interest in the processes in order to ensure accountability beyond verbal commitments.
By Cliff Ekuful
