STEM should drive education - Akufo-Addo

Flag bearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo has suggested that Ghana’s education should be restructured so that Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) become the driving force for accelerated growth.

According to Mr Akufo-Addo, all countries in the world that have made the transformation that the NPP is committed to making in Ghana, have had to pass through that route.

Mr Akufo-Addo said this when he paid a visit to Ashesi University after gracing the installation ceremony of Nana Osae-Sekyie as a sub-chief of Berekuso-Asebe.

“The focus of what is being done here is clearly what we want to give to our educational system in the next fifty years. … We have to find a way of restructuring and reorienting our educational system so that Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics become the driving force. All the countries in the world that have made the transformation that we are committed to doing in Ghana have had to pass through that route. It’s extremely important for us in Ghana to come to an understanding that this has to be the goal for us. So to come and see Ashesi doing this first-hand is very refreshing and extremely encouraging,” he stated.

Mr Akufo-Addo noted that the future of the country lies in unleashing the potential of the Ghanaian. He noticed that: “We live in a country where people tend to believe that everything has to be done by the state, whether in education, driving the economy or social welfare,” adding that: “It is the exact opposite of what some of us believe. We believe that the future of our country is better served by unleashing the energies of our people: the sense of enterprise and the sense of creativity of the Ghanaian people...”

President of Ashesi University, Dr Patrick Awuah, who received Nana Akufo-Addo and his entourage, expressed gratitude to the flag bearer for the visit, and reiterated Ashesi’s resolve to contribute to Ghana’s growth.

“Such attention from the leadership of our country for the next generation is very important,” he said. “In addition to the work we do in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, we are also very engaged in the education of good citizens and leaders, who have empathy and concern for their society, and who are committed to solving problems,” he said.