PARLIAMENTARY STATEMENT ON EDUCATION AND TEACHER REFORMS
BY DR. MATTHEW OPOKU-PREMPEH, HONOURABLE MINISTER OF EDUCATION
Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity to make a statement on this government’s
achievements in the education sector, with particular focus on access, equity, quality and
teacher education reforms.
Mr. Speaker, in December 2016, Ghanaians gave the New Patriotic Party (NPP) led by
His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo a four-year mandate to govern this
country, following their appreciation of our manifesto pledges and policies as being
capable of positioning our country on a better footing for a brighter future. The NPP
government quickly set to work, to implement our core electoral promises, in fulfilment
of that sacred and solemn covenant with the people. Three and half years on, the
achievements speak for itself, and remain a blueprint for the future of this country.
Mr. Speaker, Ghana leads countries like Taiwan, Singapore and Japan in natural
resource endowment. However, these countries continue to stimulate the most successful
development stories, growing at significantly faster rates than Ghana, partly because they
invest heavily in their citizens’ education, training and vital skills acquisition. Our over
reliance on natural resources which are finite, to drive our development agenda is
unsustainable. Investing in human capital and building stronger economic value of the
citizenry rather, as in the case of Taiwan, Singapore and Japan, is regarded as a
significant force multiplier that creates limitless potentials.
Mr. Speaker, the focus on education and acquisition of essential 21st century skills for
the new millennium learners is now pervasive than it was in the past, across the world.
It is on record, empirically, that every single year of schooling raises earnings by 10
percent, a rate of return that is obviously higher than alternative investments in bonds,
stocks, deposits, among others. That is why the country is determined to develop our
human capital capacity. The President, Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo, is committed to
providing our citizens with the requisite knowledge, skills and experiences, needed to lift them from deprivation to the path of prosperity. Education is the shortest pathway
between deprivation and opportunity, between despair and hope, between helplessness
and promise. It gives meaning to the preamble of the 1992 Constitution, which among
other things, provides that we “secure for ourselves and posterity, the blessings of liberty,
equality of opportunity and prosperity.”
Mr. Speaker, when we came into government, we made an immediate and remarkable
strides in education by rolling out our flagship Free SHS programme in September 2017,
just 9 months into our first year in office. It was a promise to the people of Ghana and
we kept it. To date, over 1.2 million students have benefited from the Free SHS
programme which has expanded access to secondary education and enabled an extra
400,000 students to enroll in Senior High School. Despite few initial challenges in respect
of implementation, Ghanaians have largely embraced this programme and the
testimonies are endless.
Mr. Speaker, we all know that, in 2016, many ridiculed our capacity to implement the
programme, citing unavailability of funding, inadequate physical classroom structures and
other school facilities to support implementation, among others. Seeing how successful
the programme’s implementation has been with such important policies such as the
Double Track Year-Round Calendar, sustainable funding strategies, among others, our
opponents are making a U-turn and promising a review of the programme if they win
power in the 2020 elections, except they have failed to specifically say what aspect they
will review, and to what end and purpose.
Mr. Speaker, It is also instructive to note, that under the Progressively Free SHS policy
touted by the NDC when it was in government, they left arrears of GHC 30,120,552.00
(thirty million, one hundred and twenty thousand, five hundred and fifty-two
Ghana Cedis) in respect of the 2015/16 academic year when the programme started
with day students only. That has since been paid by the Akufo-Addo led government.
Nothing at all was paid by the NDC in respect of the 120,000 boarding students to be
catered for under the high-sounding Progressively Free programme in the 2016/17
academic year.
Mr. Speaker, Notwithstanding the initial hiccups, the Free SHS programme is here to
stay and we are confident that the generality of Ghanaians are fully behind it. Mr
Speaker, let me assure the house that President Akufo-Addo is committed to ensuring
that no child in this country will ever be left behind or denied access to senior high school
education for the sole reason that their family is unable to pay for their education.
Mr. Speaker, in our effort to achieve greater access to education, we recognize that
access alone is no adequate in guaranteeing the quality education we desire. For this
reason, government is committed to ensuring quality and relevant education that will
produce confident, skilled and global citizens who are ready and able to compete with
their counterparts anywhere in the world.
Mr. Speaker, we have, from the very beginning of this administration, resolved to pursue bold and transformative measures to address fundamental challenges that had undermined education, including in particular, access to, equity in and quality of education. Permit me to run through some of the key measures taken.
First, Basic Schools had high incidence of fees and levies as Capitation Grant amount of
GHS 4.5 per child per year that we came to meet was woefully inadequate. Research
conducted by the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) in 2015 revealed
that fees and levies charged to pupils hindered access and effective participation in basic
education to those who had difficulty paying fees and levies imposed by the schools.
Effective 2017/18 academic year, Capitation Grant amount was increased from GHS 4.5
per student per year to GHS 10.0 per student per year.
The 122% increase in per capita Capitation Grant has contributed to removing the cost barriers to free access and provide schools with minimum amount of funds required to keep schools running.
Mr. Speaker, significant numbers of teachers in our public basic schools were untrained.
In 2016, the ratio of pupil to trained teacher was 1:52 at the Kindergarten and 1:43 at
Primary level. Similarly, the percentage of trained teachers was 66% at the Kindergarten
level and 78% at the Primary level. To improve the quality of education, we have had to
increase the supply of trained teachers to our basic schools. Within the period, the pupil
to trained teacher ratio has improved to 1:37 at the Kindergarten level and 1:33 at the
Primary level in 2019.
The percentage of trained teachers has also improved to 88% at the Primary level. In addition, we met huge outstanding bills under the leadership of Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang as Minister of Education, on key supplies for education service delivery. There was outstanding bill of approximately GHS 9m on Capitation Grant, GHS 4m on Feeding Grant for Special Schools, GHS 14m on exercise books to basic schools, and GHS 4m on the supply of school uniforms among many others.
Moreover, there was delays in the disbursement of capitation and feeding grants for Special Schools affecting the effective operation of the schools. Within the period, Government has
cleared all the arrears and ensured timely release of capitation and feeding grants for Special Schools.
Mr. Speaker, learning outcomes were low across our pre-tertiary levels of education.
Both in 2013 and 2015 Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) and Early Grade
Mathematic Assessment (EGMA) results showed that by the end of P2, only 2% or less
of pupils can read with fluency and comprehension, whilst majority of pupils don’t perform
well in mathematics beyond the procedural level. In the National Education Assessment
(NEA) conducted in 2016, only 11% of Primary 6 pupils were proficient in Mathematics.
Mr. Speaker, it is heartwarming to note that the well thought out initiatives pursued
since 2017 are beginning to yield results. In the 2018 National Education Assessment
proficiency rate in Mathematics increased from 11% in 2016 to 22% in 2018.
At the secondary level, performance in WASSCE was poor. From 2011 to 2016,
approximately 75% of all Candidates failed to achieved qualification for tertiary
education. In 2015, approximately 49% of candidates scored F9 in mathematics and
37% of candidates scored F9 in Integrated Science. To improve performance, we have
invested in the supply relevant instructional resources to schools, recruited and deployed
teachers, provided in-service training to teachers with a focus on mathematics and
science, and strengthened school leadership and management.
In 2019, pass rate in Mathematics reached 65%, the highest ever since the exams was introduced decades ago. Similarly, the proportion of students that score F9 in mathematics has declined from 45% in 2015 to 14% in 2019. In integrated Science, pass rate increased from 48% in2016 to 63% in 2019. Proportion of students that score F9 in Integrated Science declined from 37% in 2015 to 10% in 2019.
For a long period, effective and meaningful learning in our schools was challenged with
a curriculum which was fragmented, overloaded and did not meet international standards.
Aside lacking in fundamentals of learning and learning progression, the objective-based
curriculum and its associated assessment expectations at the pre-tertiary level do not
align with the idea of making learning more relevant to the social and economic needs of
the twenty-first century. Consequently, in 2017, we prioritized curriculum revision and
pursued it aggressively. Within the period under review, KG – Primary 6 curriculum was
completed, transitioning us from an objective-based curriculum to a 21st century
standards-based curriculum.
Almost all 153,000 KG and primary school teachers across
the country received an initial training and continue to update their skills and
competencies on the new curriculum. Roll-out commenced in September 2019 at the
beginning of the 2019/2020 academic year. With the revised curricular, emphasis has
been placed on the acquisition of foundational reading, writing, arithmetic and creative
skills and core competencies including Creativity and innovation, Critical thinking and
Problem-solving, Communication and Collaboration, Cultural identity and Global
citizenship, Personal development and Leadership, and Digital literacy.
Mr. Speaker, as a sequel to the KG-Primary curriculum, Cabinet has approved the
Common Core Programme (CCP) Curriculum for Junior and Senior High School and we
expect to roll it out at the beginning of the next academic year. The CCP is a carefully
designed curriculum for learners in JHS 1 (Basic 7) to SHS 1 (Basic 10) as part of the
learning experiences necessary to prepare them for higher education, the world of work
or both. With significant emphasis on a set of high internationally-benchmarked career
and tertiary ready standards, the CCP is designed around building character and nurturing
values, in addition to ensuring a seamless progression for all targeted learners from JHS
to SHS.
At the end of the CCP, learners have the options of branching into either the
academic pathway or the career pathway for two years (SHS 2 to SHS 3), leading to
either a high school or career-ready diploma. Our transformational efforts on the
curriculum is focused on ensuring that we have the dream Ghanaian child who is
competent and able to match up to any of their counterparts anywhere in the world.
Mr. Speaker, with significant numbers of our children truncating their education at the
Basic level in the previous years, the free SHS programme together with the
comprehensive nature of the CCP curriculum, that holds both junior high and senior high
together, will certainly increase opportunity for many to access improved quality
secondary education. In the past, approximately 30% of all students placed in SHS failed
to enroll. The proportion of students placed in SHS that failed to enroll declined to 11%
in 2019. Transition rate from JHS 3 to SHS 1 has also increased from 63% in 2016 to 90% in 2019.
Mr. Speaker, in the Technical, Vocational, Education & Training (TVET) sub-sector, we
were challenged with poor coordination, incoherent management structures and
governance arrangement, all of which retarded the positive development of TVET and
skills training sub-sector. Given the potential of TVET to our national development, we
developed a big vision for the sub-sector. We have within the period put together a 5-
year TVET Strategic Plan that is guiding the development on the TVET and skills training
front.
At the tertiary level, we met a sector without a guiding policy direction. Consequently,
tertiary education had developed without proper guidance as expansion was not properly
coordinated. Within the period, we took on the challenge and developed a National
Tertiary Education Policy with extensive stakeholder consultations. This subsequently fed
the Public University Bill which is currently going through the legislative process.
Mr. Speaker, the education sector had outdated legal and institutional framework. This
posed a challenge to effective management and governance of the sector for the delivery
of quality service. To address this, we initiated a comprehensive legal and institutional
reform agenda in 2017. To date, the Ministry has five bills laid before Parliament. We are
strengthening the school inspection framework through the National Inspectorate Board.
Our efforts have focused on ensuring that we have a school inspections regime that also
supports school improvement. To this end, we are improving on management and
accountability systems to ensure that our schools are led by leaders who see themselves
as instructional leaders as well as school administrators.
They must be empowered to deliver improved learning outcomes and take responsibility for those outcomes. We have supported the Ghana Education Service (GES) to refocus their supervision from policing to supporting schools to improve. To this end, the GES is in the process of re-training their Circuit Supervisors to become School Improvement and Support Officers (SISO). We continue to invest in school infrastructure and teaching and learning materials.
Mr. Speaker, all these important reforms will come to nothing without engaging the
teachers, for the simple reason that the teachers are at the centre of the education system
as the front-liners and engineers of quality learning outcomes. The Nana Addo Dankwa
Akufo-Addo administration is motivated by “putting the teacher first” in the several
reforms we have undertaken in the education space, focusing on positioning our teachers
to acquire the right set of skills to deliver quality learning outcomes for our students.
Indeed, one of the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic is the fact that the significance of
our gallant, hardworking teachers is better appreciated by parents who suddenly have to
deal with their boisterous young children round the clock.
Mr. Speaker, our mantra has been and remains “Teacher First”. This is what guided our
key promise to restore the teacher training allowance that was abolished by the then
Mahama led NDC government. We have kept to that promise!
Our record as a government on teacher reforms has revolved around the nine UNESCO approved benchmarks as follows:
- Teacher recruitment and retention
- Teacher education
- Teacher deployment
- Career pathways
- Teacher employment and working conditions
- Teacher reward and remuneration
- Teacher standards
- Teacher accountability
- School governance
Teacher Education
Mr. Speaker, for years, our most treasured learners, particularly those in basic schools
(KGs, Primary and JHS), were taught by teachers whose initial teacher training had
consistently been a source of worry. The minimum teaching qualification for basic school
teachers used to be Diploma in Basic Education from our Colleges of Education whiles
their counterpart teachers in secondary schools was a Bachelors’ Degree from the
Universities.
Many previous research evidence and government policy documents had
suggested that weakness in the quality of teachers produced through the DBE
programme. For example, a report by a Department for International Development
(DFID) funded project (Transforming Teacher Education and Learning (T-TEL)) in 2015,
observed that, the Diploma in Basic Education curriculum does not adequately prepare
trainees to teach in Ghanaian schools.
Mr. Speaker, we deeply appreciate the fact that the early years of a child’s education
are extremely significant to their future achievement. Consequently, we have, in our focus
on teacher reforms taken the necessary steps to upgrade all our Colleges of Education to
university colleges to award a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) degrees, following a review
of the teacher education curriculum into standards-based curriculum. Implementation of
the new teacher education curriculum began in October 2018, with each College of
Education affiliated to one of five of our public universities.
In this regard, Mr. Speaker, I am glad to reiterate that the minimum qualification for teaching at any of our basic schools is now first degree, in addition to other regulatory requirements of the National Teaching Council. Working in close collaboration with, and the support of the T-TEL programme, our aim is to upgrade capacity and improve upon the quality of teacher
education to position our teachers to be able to respond to our current and future
challenges in education.
Licensure Programme
Mr. Speaker, the Education Act (Act 778) passed by this house in 2008 led to the setup
of the National Teaching Council (NTC) with responsibility for setting professional
standards, registering and licensing teachers. Since 2018, government have supported
the National Teaching Council to successfully put in place the mechanisms to conducting
of a rigorous and credible teacher licensure examination, as provided by law under the
Education Act 2008 (Act 778). The aim of the teacher licensure regime is primarily to
enable qualified teachers to acquire a professional license and prepare them to meet the
demands of the National Teaching Standards as well as Global Standards of minimum
knowledge, skills, values and attitudes necessary to deliver effectively in schools.
Government believes this will help to improve the image to teaching to be at par with
other professions.
Mr. Speaker, to further deepen our commitment to teachers and their professional
growth, the NPP government is introducing a Professional Teacher Allowance of GHS
1,200 per year for professional teachers, and GHS600 per year for non-professional
teachers. This will enable teachers to invest in improving and upgrading their skills and
keeping abreast with modern trends to assist in improving learning outcomes.
Research Fund and Book & Research Allowance
Mr. Speaker, the Book & Research Allowance which was abolished by the NDC
government, has been restored by this government. We have not only restored it but we
have approved a 200% increase in the allowance, from the GHS500 to GHS 1,500. Let’s
not forget that this was introduced under His Excellency President John Agyekum Kufuor.
Further to this, Mr. Speaker, this government has laid before Parliament, the Ghana
National Research Fund Bill, the purpose of which is to provide for funds and to
support national research in tertiary and research institutions.
Support for University Teachers Seeking to Upgrade their Qualifications
Mr. Speaker, through the GETFund, government is providing support for university
teachers who want to upgrade their qualifications. Indeed, a staff audit of technical
universities and Colleges of Education revealed several qualification gaps, and staff who
fall short of the minimum qualifications required to teach in those institutions have up to
two years to update their qualifications and are able to draw on these resources.
Post-Retirement Contracts
Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to announce to the house that Cabinet has approved
proposals for the management of post-retirement contracts in public universities. This
approval provides grounds for streamlining and regularizing the need to retain highly
skilled and experienced academic staff to support the core business of the universities.
Post-retirement contracts in all public universities shall be guided by the following rules;
Mandatory retirement for academic staff of public universities shall continue to be
60 years, in line with constitutional provisions.
Professorial grade staff (Associate Professors and Professors) shall be eligible
for post-retirement contracts until the age of 70. The initial contract shall be for 5
years up to the age of 65, and then afterwards, contracts shall be offered on a
2+2+1 basis, subject to need and good health.
Senior Lecturers shall be eligible for post-retirement contract on a 2+2+1 basis
only up to the age of 65, again subject to need and good health.
Mr. Speaker, this approval has become particularly necessary as part of measures to
bolster and maintain a critical mass of key academic staff to support the anticipated
significant increase in tertiary enrolment as a consequence of the Free Senior High School
Programme. The retention of highly skilled and experienced staff is further aimed at
boosting graduate enrolment and research, overall faculty research output and the
training of young faculty staff, among others.
Teacher Pathways
Mr. Speaker, as part of school management reforms, government is introducing
management pathways for teachers who show an early interest in school management.
We will then support them with the necessary management training processes to enable
them access school leadership roles early on in their careers. We believe it is important
to identify and groom inspirational teachers to assume management roles and drive
academic excellence.
Teacher Selection, Retention and Incentives
Mr. Speaker, since this government took office in January 2017, we have so far
employed a total of 66,357 teaching and non-teaching staff in the pre-tertiary sector as
of the end of 2019. Further, financial clearance has been obtained to recruit an additional
27,367 teaching and non-staff, comprising 16,500 newly qualified teachers, 6,500
graduate teachers, 3,232 replacement staff and 1,135 non-teaching staff. This brings the
total to a staggering 93, 724 employed by the end of this year for pre-tertiary. At the
tertiary level, we have since 2017 we have recruited a total of 6,176 staff.
Mr. Speaker, there was a time in this country when under the three-month pay policy
our hard-working teachers were paid only three months’ salary, no matter how long they
had worked since being engaged. This bare faced injustice formed part of what became
known as the legacy arrears that this government inherited. Today, all newly
engaged teachers have had all their arrears paid a few months after commencing
employment. Again, so far, this government has cleared over 91% of the legacy
arrears we inherited. That is competence!
Mr. Speaker, hitherto, the teacher promotion was a laborious, lengthy and expensive
face-to-face interview process riddled with perceptions of corruption and victimization
that was stuck in 20th century practices and procedures. We engaged the teacher unions
and other stakeholders and eventually settled on an aptitude test for particular ranks of
applicants. I am pleased, Mr. Speaker, to report to this house that the maiden aptitude
test for promotion has been a resounding success and teachers appreciate the relatively
simple process now in place. That, Mr. Speaker, is competence!
Again, Mr. Speaker, contrary to the previous situation where it took months for
promoted teachers to have their salary adjustments reflected, I am pleased to inform the
house that teachers who received their promotion letters in April 2020 saw the reflection
of the adjustments in their May 2020 salaries. That, Mr. Speaker, is competence!
Mr. Speaker, issues regarding teachers’ conditions of service are being worked on in
conjunction with the National Teaching Council and Fair Wages Commission and
government will soon be able to resolve any outstanding challenges.
Mr. Speaker, government’s reforms in teacher education form part of a wider scope of reforms at all levels to ensure that our education delivery system meets the needs of a modern, 21st
century economy that produces skilled, confident, competitive citizens to power its industrialization.
Mr. Speaker, we will continue to engage with the teacher unions, student unions and
other stakeholders on how to improve the image of the teaching profession, improve
teacher education and training as well as improving learning outcomes. Our vision of a 21st century teacher is a competent, skilled and professionally trained person equipped
with the right set of skills and competencies to play a key role in delivering improved
learning outcomes for learners to meet our development needs.
TVET and Skills Development.
Mr. Speaker, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) has extensively grown
in status across the world. The growth is largely owed to the general acceptance that TVET
is a driving force for socio-economic development. Irrefutably, TVET provides desirable
talents, skills and the needed manpower that is required to propel development.
This Government, acknowledging the potential TVET presents strategically, set the following
priorities:
- Provide the youth with skills that will make them employable, enhance their livelihoods
and create wealth. - Provide the youth with the skills required by industries as government pursues the
One District, One Factory (1D1F) and other development strategies. - Make Skills and TVET the driver of development in the country.
- Enhance the Ghanaian workforce to make them globally competitive and attractive.
- Provide the youth the opportunity to fully explore their capabilities with state-of-the-art training, learning facilities and equipment as we industrialize Ghana.
To this end, Government through the Ministry of Education developed a five year “Strategic Plan for TVET Transformation” to ensure a well-organized, coordinated and effective national TVET system. It is hoped that such a system will effectively support the economic development agenda, which the government has embarked upon, by promoting skills development and improving the productivity and competitiveness of the skilled workforce of this country.
Mr. Speaker, the implementation of this Strategic Plan has resulted in enhancing the
Governance arrangement in the sector to the extent that all public TVET institutions are
being realigned to be under the Ministry of Education. The Education Regulatory Bodies
Bill that was recently passed and the Pre-Tertiary Education Bill currently before the
house provides the legal bases for the realignment. This will resolve the fragmentation
in the TVET landscape where the public TVET Institutions were scattered under nineteen
different Ministries.
Mr. Speaker, this will lead to effective coordination, regulation,
harmonization, standardization and quality of instruction delivery in TVET.
Mr. Speaker, TVET Infrastructural deficit that has been a major drag on quality delivery
in the TVET Sector is being addressed. This is manifested in the upgrading and
modernization of all National Vocational training Institutes (NVTIs), Opportunity
Industrialisation Centers (OIC), Construction of two Foundries and Machining centers;
Upgrading of 17 Technical and Vocational Institutes, building of office to support the unit
responsible for TVET Examination and the first phase for the establishment of the 32
State-of-the-Art TVET Centres which is about to be commence and preparatory activities
are underway to seek approval for the second phase. There are additional infrastructural
and equipment provision at all Technical Universities to achieve quality delivery in the
TVET at the Tertiary Level.
Mr. Speaker, the situation where our brothers and sisters, sons and daughters complete
their schooling and are unable find employment has largely been attributed to the
mismatches in demand and supply of industry skills needs. To resolve this situation a
skills gap analysis and audit of seven key sectors was conducted and the areas that need
urgent attention is currently being addressed through the development of the relevant
Competency Based Programmes and the establishment of Sector Skills Bodies.
The sectors that the Skills Gap Analysis and Audit covered were:
• Agriculture,
• Manufacturing,
• Construction,
• Information Communications Technology (ICT),
• Tourism and Hospitality,
• Energy, (Renewable Energy and Oil and Gas)
• Electricals and electronics.
Mr. Speaker, the Ghana TVET Voucher Project (GTVP), a project under the Ghanaian German Financial Development Cooperation, financed through KfW Development Bank
and the Government of Ghana provides demand-driven training vouchers to Council for
TVET (COTVET) registered master craft persons, their apprentices and workers.
The vouchers are used to fund competency-based training (CBT) in the following areas;
● Beauty / Cosmetics (Cosmetology)
● Consumer Electronics
● Automotive repair
● Building Construction (Welding)
● Garment / tailoring/ dressmaking
● Plumbing Furniture making
● Electrical installation
● Block laying and tiling
● Catering and hospitality
Mr. Speaker, 13,326 individuals have so far benefitted from this project and many more
are going to benefit with additional trades. Mr. Speaker, Government has also submitted to this house the Ghana Jobs and Skills Project, which will lead to the upgrading of skills among the country’s population, create more and better-quality jobs and improve on job outcomes for the youth. It connects success in these areas to social cohesion and economic inclusion. This is reflected in the government’s Coordinated Programme of Economic and Social Development Policies (2017–2024): An Agenda for Jobs: Creating Prosperity and Equal Opportunity for All
(Government of Ghana 2017).
Mr. Speaker, the Development Objective of the project is to support skills development
and job creation in Ghana. It supports the government’s prioritized skills development
and job creation agenda, through four major components and these are:
(a) Component 1: Provision of apprenticeship training for jobs
(b) Component 2: Provision of entrepreneurship and micro and small enterprise
support for jobs
(c) Component 3: Operationalization of the Ghana Labor Market Information
System, upgrading of district Public Employment Centers and services, and
independent performance reviews of select government youth employment and
skills development programs
(d) Component 4: Capacity development, technical assistance, and project
management support to coordinating, implementing, and partnering agencies for
enhanced skills and jobs impact.
Mr. Speaker, The project will ensure the development of Competency-Based Training
packages in at least One hundred (100) additional priority trades, accredit at least Two
Hundred and Fifty (250) additional Training Providers for the Provision of Competency Based Training and provide a minimum Twenty Five Thousand (25,000) individuals with
Apprenticeship Training, under a formalized, standardized, and quality-assured system.
Mr. Speaker, improving quality TVET delivery is very critical to government and so it
has been working smart and this has led to the accreditation of 115 training providers
out which 33 are public and 82 private TVET institutions to implement competency-based
training, built capacity of 165 external verifiers for implementation of competency-based
training in TVET institutions.
Mr. Speaker, let me state that until this government assumed office, the National
Technical and Vocational Education and Training Qualification Framework (NTVETQF)
was on the shelves gathering dust. I am glad to report that 6817 learners have been
certified of the qualification framework. Mr. Speaker, forty-two (42) Competency Based Training (CBT) packages have been developed for various skilled trades; whilst Twenty (20) CBT packages for generics at levels 1-4 on the NTVETQF are have been developed.
Mr. Speaker, the MyTVET campaign has been launched and being implemented. The
campaign is to help change the negative perceptions about TVET in Ghana using tools
such as:
i. Career guidance and counselling. (Manuals has been provided for 100 JHS
and training provided for the G & C Coordinators.
ii. TVET Clubs in Junior High Schools.
iii. Skills Competitions Skills International.
iv. TVET ambassadors and role models.
v. Interactive MyTVET web portal.
vi. TVET roadshows.
vii. Radio, Newspaper and TV advertisements.
viii. Outdoor Advertising (MyTVET Billboards, brochures, flyers and posters).
Mr. Speaker, Ghana has registered as the 81st member of WorldSkills International
(WSI) and Ghana will be part of a global movement dedicated to promoting the benefits
of skills training, have access to resources, activities, and events across WSI’s six focus
areas (i.e. promoting skills, education and training, Skills Competition, International
Development, Career Building and Research). Mr. Speaker, WorldSkills Ghana’s
(WSGh’s) aims at inspiring world-class excellence in skills development and introducing
the youth to a variety of skilled careers and thus, generate greater awareness on the
importance of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and the
development of skills for national and global economies.
WorldSkills International is a movement that is changing the lives of young people
through skills. It is made up of 83 Member organizations reaching two-thirds of the
world’s population and creates measurable impact at every level. Our membership will
build the confidence of young people, empower communities, and fuel our economy
through youth employability, creativity and innovation. This is to ensure that as a country,
we grow the right set of skills required for industrialization and economic growth.
In the end, Mr. Speaker, ours is to make Ghana a learning nation through
education and I am confident that under our visionary President of the Republic, His
Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, we will get there
Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to make this statement of government in
line with Order 70(2) in this august house.