President Akufo-Addo inaugurates 80 education projects

The government of Ghana on Thursday inaugurated 80 new educational infrastructure in about 60 municipalities and districts across the country as part of efforts to transform the delivery of education.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo symbolically inaugurated the refurbished Saint Barnabas Anglican School at Osu in Accra to mark the simultaneous inauguration of the facilities.

The projects range from two-unit Kindergarten blocks to three; and 18-unit classroom blocks for basic and second cycle schools, as well as two E-Blocks completed from the previous administration.

The blocks come as classrooms, laboratories, dormitories, dining halls, kitchens, education offices and ancillary facilities.

President Akufo-Addo said the event was not just a moment for Saint Barnabas Anglican School but for all who believed in the power of education to transform lives and communities.

Government vision

He said it was the vision of his government that every child in Ghana, no matter his or her background or location, had access to an environment that inspired learning and ambition.

 The St Barnabas School building at Osu. Picture: SAMUEL TEI ADANO

“As we open the doors to this newly renovated school, we are opening the doors to opportunity, hope and a brighter future and the story of Saint Barnabas Anglican School is one that resonates deeply with me,” he said.

The President recounted that for over six decades, the school stood in the heart of Accra as a beacon of education, yet it suffered from neglect.

“The closest basic public school to the Ministry of Education has not seen any major renovation since its establishment on November 1, 1961,” President Akufo-Addo stated.

He said the classrooms before their transformation had broken windows, leaky roofs and learning spaces unfit for children.

The President described that as totally unacceptable, saying that spurred immediate action and together with Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia “we resolved to give this school the attention it so desperately needed.”

“Today, what stands before us is a transformed Barnabas, a school equipped with modern facilities designed to meet the demands of 21st Century education”.

“These are not just classrooms with new paints and ceilings; they are spaces of possibility, where dreams are nurtured and talents discovered. The transformation of this school symbolises hope,” President Akufo-Addo stated.

He said the classroom structure communicated to every student who walked through its gates that they were valued, their education mattered and their future was limitless.

Appreciation

President Akufo-Addo said none of that would have been possible without the hard work and commitment of the many people who played a part in making the project a reality.

He, therefore, expressed appreciation to both the past and current Ministers of Education under his government, the contractors, engineers, assembly members, teachers, parents and, especially, the headmaster, Benedictus Agbo, who he said, had been very dedicated.

Transformation

The Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, who was visibly excited about the transformation taking place in the education sector and St Barnabas Anglican School at Osu, said:

“Today we have a changed St Barnabas Anglican School”.

“We have the students as a testimony, their uniforms a testimony of transformation and their buildings a testimony of transformation,” he added.

“We have terrazzo, disabled access, everything you want to see in a school is here; we are equipping the library, more equipment is coming this way. We want to create a school system that transforms Osu,” he said.

Dr Adutwum further told the people of Osu that President Akufo-Addo was investing in the future and pointed out that a large portion of Osu PRESEC had also witnessed rehabilitation.

Source: Graphic online