The headmistress of the Pong-Tamale Senior High School in the northern region, Mrs. Margaret Alasima Gbande has appealed to government to come to the aid of the school with water and adequate infrastructure. The school, according to the head mistress lacks adequate classrooms and dormitory and teachers’ accommodation.
“Learning becomes ineffective from March to August each year because students have to embark walk several miles in search of water,” Mrs. Gbande said. She added that the school has managed to erect improvised small structures for the administration block thus making record keeping and tracing of documents difficult. There is a similar structure for kitchen and dining.
The headmistress was speaking at the school’s 25th anniversary celebration on Saturday on the theme “25 years of community-based senior High School Success, Challenges and the way Forward’’.
“My students still carry yellow gallons in search of water and are a big worry to the administration,” Mrs Gbande told parents and stakeholders. “We are fortunate to have benefited from a government school bus last year, but I am still using a 1991 Mitsubishi vehicle to attend official meetings in Tamale which breaks down almost every day; I am not complaining but that’s the reality.”
Touching on the academic performance Mrs Gbande expressed her happiness about the progress of the school. According to her, the school was established in 1991 with only one program but now offers six courses which include visual arts, agricultural science, general arts, and business.
The Northern Regional Minister, Mr. Salifu Sa-eed who was the guest of honor, lauded the theme for the celebration saying it offers an opportunity for introspection, to look within, to identify challenges and successes and to make the relevant adjustments for a thriving future.
Mr. Sa-eed said education has the lasting potential of making lives better and that through quality education people can be empowered and communities and the nation transformed.
“Despite the improvement in the enrolment of girls, it is still difficult for most girls to proceed to the tertiary level from high schools. It behooves us all to make room for the enrollment of more girls and to make the school more productive for them,” he said.
The minister pointed out that the government has recognized the critical role of education in nation development, and therefore has introduced the free Senior High School policy.
The free SHS policy will start in the 2017/2018 academic year. As the party in power we have made a firm commitment to this policy,” he emphasized.