Empowering rural communities is an investment in the future under GES Lively Minds Programme - Alhassan Suhuyini

The Member of Parliament for Tamale North, Alhassan Suhuyini, has shed light on a critical issue plaguing rural communities, which is the lack of access to quality early childhood education.

Suhuyini Alhassan said that over 250 million children worldwide, predominantly in rural areas of the global south, are deprived of adequate education and care during their formative years, leading to a cascade of negative outcomes.

These, he said, include poor health, limited education, child marriages, and perpetuation of poverty.

In a statement in parliament, he commended the efforts of governments since 2008 in acknowledging the importance of early childhood education through initiatives like two years of pre-primary education as part of Free and Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE).

Moreover, he said the endorsement of the Early Childhood Education Policy Framework in 2020 signifies a commitment to providing a holistic foundation for children's development.

"In 2008, the country included two years of pre-primary education (kindergarten) as part of its constitutional commitment to Free and Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE) and as part of strengthening the Early Childhood Education sub-system, the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service has facilitated the approval of the ECE Policy Framework and endorsed by the cabinet in 2020. This was to prepare children in readiness for primary school, and to develop holistically, their physical, social, emotional, and intellectual needs in order to build a broad and solid foundation for their well-being.

"Mr Speaker, it is expected that the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service will among other things, ensure that KG Spaces are available for all KG children in Ghana, engage families and communities to provide learning opportunities at home to support children’s school readiness and to, through strategic collaboration with key stakeholders, ensure that the Early Childhood Education Policy Framework is implemented across the country, to impact positively, develop holistically, every four and five-year-old child in Ghana," he said.

However, Suhuyini Alhassan pointed out that rural communities face unique challenges, including limited access to quality preschool spaces, lack of resources, and entrenched poverty.

He highlighted the exemplary work of Lively Minds, an NGO operating in rural communities in Ghana, in promoting early childhood education.

He commended the "GES Lively Minds Programme," which empowers parents with limited education and resources, to actively engage in their children's development.

Despite facing challenges, community volunteers continue to demonstrate unwavering dedication, utilizing locally available materials to create teaching resources, he explained.

"Mr Speaker this is where I wish to introduce to members and commend highly the efforts of an organization, Lively Minds, an NGO doing an amazing work in about 2624 rural communities in Ghana to promote early childhood education. This initiative has been adopted by the government of Ghana and has been dubbed the 'GES Lively Minds' Programme.

"This approach aims to shift the mindsets and behaviours of parents so they realise that despite their poverty and limited education they have the power and the means to make a change.

"93% of parents in their programme have less than 2 years of primary education. I have had the opportunity to visit some of their operational areas and the community volunteers are not paid for their work on the programme, nor are they provided with materials or infrastructure but their dedication to bring about significant and wide-ranging improvements in their children’s development is admirable. They use basic teaching learning resources created by themselves using materials mostly picked from their environment," he added.

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NAY/AE