The Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembelle, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has launched phase one of the ‘Ellembelle School Bus’ initiative with two brand new buses at Kanokware near Aiyinasi in the Ellembelle of the District of the Western Region.
The initiative is an education project to assist the Ghana Education Service (GES) in to conveying school children in rural communities who trek long distances to go to nearby schools.
Launching the initiative, Mr Buah, also the Deputy Minority Leader in Parliament, said the intervention formed part of his 2020 campaign pledge to procure buses for the GES to enhance access to quality education in deprived areas.
‘I grew up in a farming community, and I used to walk several miles before going to school. My experience was an unpleasant one which no children must go through,’ he said.
Mr Buah said walking long distances to school affected the academic performance of the children, thus, the initiative was to relief them of the burden they went through when accessin
g education.
He said Ghana must create a system of level playing field whereby hardworking individuals could thrive and prosper, saying, ‘The Ghana that was created by Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah was one where everybody’s dream should be realised and that is the Ghana we are fighting to bring back.’
A Deputy Director in Charge of Planning at the Ellembelle GES Directorate, Mr Edward Armah, said the buses would add more value to education in the area, and reduce transportation expenses of parents, while increasing school attendance rate in the area.
He commended the MP for his contribution to improving the standard of education in the district including sponsoring mock examinations for schools, Teachers’ Awards Day, and bursaries to students, among others.
He appealed to school authorities and stakeholders in the area to ensure proper maintenance of the buses to guarantee their longevity.
The head teacher of the Kanokware Basic School, Madam Jemima Sam, said most of the children usually came to school late
as a result of walking long distances, and that affected their academic work.
She said the initiative was, therefore, timely and hoped that the buses would increase the enrolment of students at the school.
The Assembly Member for the Nyamebekyere-Kanokware Electoral Area, Mr Nicholas Kofi Mawuli, promised to ensure proper maintenance of the bus.
The immediate past Ellembelle District Director of Education, Mr Peter Ackah Blay, lauded the efforts by the MP to cater for the needs of children and the elderly in the district.
Chief of Ambainu, Nana Nyamekeh Fofole, who chaired the ceremony, thanked Mr Buah for easing the burden on the school children by providing buses for them.
Source: Ghana News Agency