NGOs promote girls education in Bole District

Wa, Aug. 24, GNA – Mr Alhassan S. Moomen, Bole District Director of Education, has said working in partnership with Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) has helped to improve the education of girls in the District.

He said this at a three-day Regional Girls Mentoring Camp which was under the theme: “Girls Education Situation” in Bole.

He said the provision of school uniforms, sandals, bags, teaching and learning materials as well as the exposure of the girls through fairs by the NGOs had helped increase their enrolment and retention in schools.

Mr Moomen said ActionAID Ghana, one of the NGOs is implementing training programmes to build the capacity and confidence of girls.

He said the NGO was also building a school at Bienyukuong to help supplement government’s efforts of making education more accessible to the youth in the District.

He said another NGO, Ibis West Africa was operating in 20 primary schools in the District and like ActionAid Ghana it was also building the capacity of girls and teachers from the beneficiary schools.

Mr Moomen said the two organisations had also helped to organise afternoon classes for 150 pupils in 10 schools throughout the District.

The Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED), a NGO in the area, had also provided support in the form of uniforms, sandals and learning kits to needy pupils in basic schools and as well as second cycle institutions.

Mr Moomen said about 180 children, 70 in Senior High Schools and 110 in Junior High Schools were under the sponsorship of CAMFED.

Mr Moomen said the Basic Education Scholarship Programme was providing support in the form of school uniforms, bags, and sandals as well as learning materials to 80 schools in the District.

He said those interventions had paid off at both the school and community levels with girls enrolment increasing steadily at the primary school level.

The figures rose from 4,392 in 2006/2007 to 5,138 in 2010/2011 while gender parity index stood at 0.88 in 2007/2008 to 0.89 2008/2009 and 0.90 in 2009/2010 to 1.0 in 2010/2011.

He said the society seemed to have become more responsive to the needs of the girls and that had reduced the drop out rate in the area.