The Honourable Municipal Chief Executive for Lower Manya Krobo, Simon Kweku Tetteh on Tuesday commissioned a six-unit classroom block fitted with ancillary facilities for the Piengua Yokuenor M/A Primary in the Lower Manya Krobo municipal of the eastern region.
He said the new facility complimented with a donation of one hundred mono desks presented by Hon Simon Kweku Tetteh will encourage an improved enrolment and give the opportunity to several children who otherwise would have turned away from the school due to its former dilapidated state to enroll.
The Municipal Chief Executive for Lower Manya who attributed the project to President Akuffo Addo’s ‘passion for education’ averred that the quest to fulfill this passion informed the government’s introduction of the flagship free Senior High School education policy.
According to the Assembly Chief, it was the wish of government to ensure good basic education for its people in preparation for the free SHS education through the promotion of sound educational environment for teachers and students.
Honourable Simon Kweku Tetteh however cautioned school authorities, pupils and students to maintain a high maintenance culture of the new facilities to ensure that they last long to serve the purpose for which they were established.
School authorities at the Piengua Yokuenor M /A Primary School had expressed concerns over the school’s low enrolment after the school, which though had facilities to accommodate more than 120 pupils at the time boasted of only 62 pupils.
The MCE who partly attributed the challenge to the absence of the school feeding program at the school and the dire infrastructural challenges at the time, said the situation forced parents to send their wards to nearby schools where the program was being ran.
To salvage the low enrolment, the municipal assembly employed some intervention measures to deal with the problem at the Piengua Yokuenor M /A Primary School including the construction of the six-classroom facility and the introduction of the school feeding program.
The school feeding program which began in earnest in the school during the last academic year will hopefully improve on enrolment.
The Hon MCE, Simon Kweku Tetteh said the completion of the construction of the classroom block fully funded by the District Development Facility will greatly improve the school’s enrolment fortunes.
The commissioning of the school comes barely six months after the MCE cut sod for the commencement of construction works on the facility in July 2018.
The MCE who partly attributed the low enrolment facing the school to the dire infrastructural challenges, said the situation forced parents to send their wards to nearby schools where facilities were relatively better.
Education authorities confirmed that many of the pupils had deserted the school for surrounding educational facilities.
Circuit supervisor for the area who accompanied the MCE on the visit, while describing the project as ‘manna,’ praised the MCE for initiating the project.
Madam Florence Dugbartey who also blamed the poor school infrastructure for recent low enrolments at the school however expressed optimism in improvement in the school’s enrolment with the completion of the classroom block which has given the school a massive facelift.
On his part, Divisional Chief of the Piengua Tradional Area in Manya Krobo in the Eastern region, Nene Tetteh Zogli III lauded the government for its committed steps towards the improvement of education in the country.
The chief while recounting the several prominent citizens who have graduated from the school since its inception hoped that the school continue to churn out more prominent citizens to contribute their quota to national development.
Present to grace the occasion were traditional leaders, security chiefs and representatives from the education directorate.
Source: Ghana | ritefmonline.org
