Buduburam refugees receives educational support

Buduburam (Central Region) - The United States Government on Monday presented over 100,000 worth of furniture, exercise and textbooks to support education of refugees at the Buduburam Refugee Camp near Kasoa in the Central Region.

They constituted 1540 dual desks for pupils, 100 teacher's tables and chairs, 10,000 assorted textbooks and 100,000 assorted exercise books. Presenting them to the authorities at the camp, the newly appointed US Ambassador to Ghana, Mrs Mary Carlin Yates, said it forms part of the US support for the African Education Initiatives, which she believed was key to economic growth, lasting democracy, greater stability and improved standard of living.

She said educating children was one of the fundamental building blocks for a strong economy, adding that one of her major goals in Ghana would be to promote community-based initiatives.

Ambassador Yates said the US was committed to supporting Ghana and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to assist refugees and neighbouring states when those states were faced with a refugee burden greater than what they handle.

To this end, she said the US has contributed $30m to the UNHCR's Africans Imitative and another $1.5m especially towards coping with the crises in Cote d'Ivoire.

Assiedu-Afram, Deputy Minister of Interior reiterated commitment to hosting and fulfilling its obligations under the various Refugee conventions. He described the donation as the true meaning of burden sharing and appealed to the residents at the camp to make maximum use of the facilities offered them to enable them to contribute their quota to the society.

Afram also appealed to the Buduburam school management committee to ensure that the materials were used for the benefits of the residents and the local community. He urged them to take their education all the seriousness it deserves saying, "there is no age limit in education and you must endeavour to take the full advantage of the facilities.

"Being a refugee does not mean you don't deserve better education and better future," he said. Thomas Albrecht, the UNHCR Representative, Ghana told the residents that the real value of the support being offered lies in the opportunity for them to benefit from quality education.

He said for many, this would throw open the doors to the future, for some it would pave the way to become competent leaders of tomorrow and for all it would ensure that they have the basis for judging their leaders and for taking their own part in democratic and peaceful development that the sub-region deserve.

He described the donation as the best investment in peace, security, stability and prosperity that could possibly be imagined. John Thompson, the Camp Manager said currently the population of the refugees at the camp was running into 30,000 with about 10,000 children attending school at the camp. He mentioned overcrowding and high school drop-out rate as the main problems facing the educational system at the camp.