Parliament adopts Report on loan agreement

Accra, Feb. 20, GNA- Parliament on Friday adopted the Report of the Joint Committee on Finance and Education on the Development Credit Agreement between the government and the International Development Association (IDA) for 78 million US dollars to finance the Education Sector Project (EdSeP).

The credit facility, which would cover a 30-year period with 10 years moratorium, has no interest rate. The Repayment involves a semi-annual instalment and commences on September 1, 2014 and ends on March 1, 2044.

The EdSeP aims at addressing critical problems in the education sector.

It has a capacity building component, which takes 15 million dollars, a pilot programmatic scheme, which has 32 million dollars and a development and an innovation in tertiary education component taking the remaining 31 million dollars.

Some key targets to be achieved at the end of the project include the increasing the primary gross enrolment rate, nation-wide, from 84 to 100 per cent.

Others are the increase of primary completion rate in grade six from 93 to 97 per cent between, 2004 and 2009.

Another key target is that 75 per cent of graduates from the polytechnics, the University for Development Studies (UDS) and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) would gain employment within 12 months of graduation.

Moving a motion for the adoption of the committee's report, Mr. James Adusei-Sarkodie, Chairman of the Committee on Education, said the overall objective of the project was to promote equitable access and efficient delivery of quality services in pre-tertiary education. He said another area was to foster innovation and relevance in tertiary education.

Mr. Adusei-Sarkodie said IDA would provide the 78 million dollars and government would contribute 10 million dollars.

Chairman of the Committee said activities under the project would include the raising of quality teaching and learning, the development of distance education capabilities to the UDS, and the expansion of access to strategically important post-graduate programmes and the tackling of the HIV/AIDS problem.

He said EdSeP began last year as a means to addressing some problems in the education sector.

Mr. Kosi Kedem, NDC-Hohoe-South, seconding the motion, said the loan was an "important facility to acquire from IDA since it covered all sectors of the education system."

He said it was commendable that the Ministry has planned to renovate the Ghana Library Board together with its 62 branches with part of the loan.

Mr. Joseph Ackah, NDC-Jomoro said it was good that the loan would assist in removing obstacles in primary education, which was the only sector every one benefited from, including the poor.

Alhaji Seidu Amadu, NDC-Yapei-Kusawgu touched on staffing in the education system and called for urgent steps to deal with the postings of teachers to rural areas.

Mr. Samuel Buor-Karkari, NPP-Amansie West said it was remarkable that the loan had no interest rate and said it would go a long way in dealing with various problems in the sector.

Miss Elizabeth Ohene, Minister in charge of Tertiary Education, said, for the first time, the World Bank had extended such a facility to benefit tertiary education unlike in the past where their assistance mainly covered basic education.

She said the polytechnics would benefit immensely from the loan and this would stem the frequent agitation from that sector. Winding up, Miss Christine Churcher, Minister, Basic, Girl-Child and Secondary Education, said there was the need to do more to encourage teachers to stay in the profession.