The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has presented 150 vehicles to a number of Senior High Schools in the continued fulfilment of a pledge by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to provide the necessary logistics to ensure access to quality education for Ghana’s youth.
Made up of 100 buses and 50 pickup trucks, this latest provision of vehicles form part of a broader, ongoing effort by government, through the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) and other stakeholders, to not only increase access to education for every Ghanaian child, but also provide the necessary infrastructure and logistics to create a conducive environment for teaching and learning.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, held at the Accra High School on Monday, 31 January 2022, Vice President Bawumia recalled that in March 2020 he handed over, on behalf of government, 365 Isuzu Double Cabin pickup trucks out of a total of 840 procured, to all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Directorates of Education, as well as selected agencies under the Ministry of Education.
“I also handed 493 out of a total 2,000 motorbikes to aid the work of circuit supervisors and to further enhance their supervisory roles in the education sector. I further announced that government had procured 350 buses for our Senior High Schools in this country and we distributed 100 of those buses in July 2020.
“Today It is indeed an honour for me to hand over a total of 150 vehicles, including 100 buses and 50 pickup vehicles for use in our secondary schools.”
Dr Bawumia underscored the importance of an efficient transportation system in the education sector, particularly in light of the flagship Free Senior High School programme, and pledged Government’s commitment to doing even more.
“It is well documented that the availability of good transportation for students positively impacts quality education delivery,” Dr Bawumia noted.
“An efficient transportation system in our schools increases student enrolment and encourages many students to stay in school. Indeed, it has been said that a dependable transportation system in schools improves the safety of students and makes teachers and students more productive.
“An efficient transportation system in schools is also key to hastening the economic transformation and the development of our country as envisioned by this Government led by His Excellency Nana Akufo-Addo.
“Thus, in the last five (5) years, our government has committed to increasing access to quality education and providing vehicles to secondary schools to support the transportation of our growing population in these schools.”
The quest to provide quality, accessible education to Ghana’s youth remains on course, and everything necessary to achieve this will continue to receive serious government attention, Vice President Bawumia emphasised.
“The hand-over of buses today is part of the efforts to increase access to quality education anchored on a robust education system that trains a critical mass of students empowered to be active participants in our country’s transformation.”
The Minister for Education, Yaw Osei Adutwum, maintained that the transformation of any nation begins with the transformation of its educational system, and lauded President Akufo-Addo for his continued efforts to actualize his vision of a Ghana full of confident, educated youth ready to make a mark on the world.
On behalf of the beneficiary schools the President of the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS), Alhaji Yacoub Abubakari, expressed gratitude to Government for the provision of logistics to schools, and pledged their support to ensure the success of the Free SHS programme.