I commend the President for commencing the second year of his first term in office (on the completion of his first year in office). The following observations and comments are however made in reaction to his second state of the nation address. The reaction is guided by a cumulative assessment of issues raised in his first sessional address vis-à-vis current emerging education policy issues, actions and intentions for 2010.

The president is hereby commended for identifying and prioritizing Civil Society advice to decentralize the management of the GETFund. In my previous submissions on education policy issues, I proposed the decentralization of the management of the GETFund for the purpose of strengthening supervision in the implementation of contracts funded by the GETFund and the prioritization of the use of the GETFund’s resources in the context of local education needs.

To date, GETfund contracts are awarded from Accra and supervised by proxy. District Assemblies have very little interest in supervising contracts they do not award. This in fact is the main reason why over 3,000 school desks meant for Kindergarten children in the Abura Asebu Kwaman Kese district have been shoddily constructed and recklessly abandoned at the forecourt of the District Assembly for months. There has been absolutely no supervision since the contract was awarded in 2008.

The District Chief Executive contends that eventhough GETFund awarded a contract for JHS chairs, they were not needed. Kindergarten Chairs were rather needed by the District Education Office. The contractor’s shoddy work is however partly a result of having to re convert already constructed JHS furniture into Kindergarten desks. Read Don’t pay contractor for shoddy chairs.

The involvement of the Ghana Education Service (GES) in this move to decentralize and localize the management of the fund is recommended. It will reduce the tendency of DCE’s to politicize the GETFund.

The President however, fell short of the following critical issues and promises he made earlier in education - The 20% allowance for rural teachers and persistent delays in the disbursement of the Capitation Grant.

The 20% allowance for rural teachers, even though was hailed, has become a mirage. This is against the background of a shortage of more than 17,000 teachers in rural areas, and an over concentration of more than 10,000 teachers in urban areas. Since its announcement in January 2009, nothing has been done in that respect. Not even the definition of rural areas or consultations with teacher unions. Absolutely, nothing. The persistent delays by the Government to own up own promise means that some 17,000 classrooms and 600,000 children remain without teachers in rural areas. This is certainly unacceptable.

The euphoria that greeted the increase in the Capitation Grant from 3-4.5 GHC has been negated by the protracted delays in the release and receipt of the Grant. This writers recent field visit to Assin South District from February 8-15th revealed that the Capitation Grant had not arrived since school re opened for the first term in September 2009. In the middle of second term, school heads have to borrow from individuals to fund the schools budget, to facilitate teaching and learning, until the Capitation Grant arrives. The President promised Ghanaians change. This obviously is not the change you promised. This has been the status quo since 2005 and needs to change immediately, if the President is really committed to his change agenda. The child cannot wait! Your Excellency, time is not your friend.

Credit:Kofi Asare
Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition
GNECC