NUGS holds annual congress

Nyankpala (N/R), Aug. 30, GNA- Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Minister of Education, Youth and Sports has said the government is committed to the development of the country's human resource recognizing that it is a decisive factor in any development of a country.

He said: "It is for this reason that the government continues to look up to the tertiary institutions as the major agents in the production of both qualitative and quantitative sources of middle and high level manpower required for sustainable economic development of the country". This was contained in an address read for him at the opening of the 37th Annual Delegates' Congress of the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) at the Nyankpala campus of the University for Development Studies (UDS), in Tamale on Friday.

Mr Baah-Wiredu told the delegates that it is the duty of every nation to ensure that its citizens receive education of the highest quality, saying, "a well educated population is the basis of the wealth of every nation".

The four-day congress has the theme: "Quality education for all, the conduit for NEPAD's success". It will hold forums on: "Conflict management and resolution"; "Making education accessible to Ghanaians, the way forward"; "Challenges of NUGS and issue a communiqu=E9. Mr Baah-Wiredu said throughout Africa the quality of education has been threatened by lack of funding and exodus of teachers, noting that increasing enrolment has led to decline in student-teacher ratio and pressure on facilities.

He said: " In Ghana, I am pleased to report, however, that educational standards are gradually improving as a result of the innovative funding scheme engendered with the establishment of the GETFUND".

"I believe that sooner than later, Ghana will recapture its enviable position as educational leaders in Africa", he said.

The Minister noted with concern that in spite of the role education is expected to play in the development process in Africa, the sector is bedevilled with many challenges including state funding of education, especially at the tertiary level.

He said other challenges are inadequate facilities for academic work, limited use of information technology in training, as well as management inefficiencies, which draw scarce resources away from the fundamental objectives of increasing access, quality and relevance.

On the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD), Mr Baah-Wiredu said the growing democracy and good governance in Africa, coupled with the emerging and dynamic leadership, have led to this new development initiative.

He, therefore, urged NUGS to make its voice heard at the various forums created for civil society organizations to offer inputs. The Minster said the main aim of NEPAD is to eradicate poverty and to place African countries on a path of sustainable growth and development. He said "The NEPAD initiative signals Africa's determination to take her destiny in her own hands", adding, "NEPAD seeks to create the enabling environment for good governance, open up the economies of Africa for foreign direct investment..."

On the role of education in NEPAD, Mr Baah-Wiredu said "education has a direct influence on national productivity, which largely determines the living standards of a country and her ability to compete and participate globally".

He said: "Specifically, education at the tertiary level support knowledge-driven growth strategies and poverty reduction by training qualified and adaptable labour force".

In a speech read for him, Mr Ernest Debra, Northern Regional Minister, noted that in spite of the many problems confronting the education sector, the government is committed and determined to fully develop the country's human resource base to ensure a sustainable national development.

To the NUGS, he said: " What I want you to know is that nothing is achieved without toil and sacrifice".

"The sacrifices you make today and the dedication and diligent approach that you accord to your studies, will constitute your future success". The Regional Minister said all efforts towards development including education, would be fruitless if there was no peace, adding, "it is against this background that I would wish to take this opportunity to call on the people of this country in general and Dagbon in particular, to give peace a chance".

Welcoming the delegates, Mr Edward Kofi Omane Boamah, NUGS President, said quality education in the country could be achieved only through adequate investment in the sector.

He said as compared to other countries in the West African sub-region, Ghana's 2.8 percent of her Gross Domestic Product (GDP) invested in education "is nothing to write home about".

Solidarity messages from the Trades Union Congress, (TUC), Ghana National Union of Polytechnic Students' Union (GNUPS) and All African Students Union (AASU), harped on the need for peace in the country to ensure sustainable development. 30 Aug. 03