The Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, has called on schoolchildren to take advantage of the various interventions put in place by the government to develop and position themselves well.
He said interventions such as the free senior high school programme, the introduction of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Schools and the recently launched Smart School initiatives were all done to prepare them well.
The minister, therefore, told schoolchildren to concentrate on their studies to justify the investment made in them by their parents and the government. "One day, you will make your dad and mom very happy but it begins today - study hard, respect your teachers and when you do that, they will do more for you.
"Pay attention to everything that they would tell you and one day, you would become a successful person," he said. Dr Adutwum made the call at a brief ceremony to mark his 60th birthday. The celebration was attended by students from three basic schools in Accra at the conference room of the Ministry of Education.
They are the Calvary Methodist Basic School, St. Barnabas Basic School and the St. Benedict Basic School. They were treated to a buffet lunch with soft drinks.
In attendance was a Deputy Minister of Education, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour; the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, Dr Eric Nkansah; the Chief Director of the MoE, Mamle Andrews; Deputy Director General of Ghana TVET Service, David Prah, directors and staff of the ministry.
The Minister of Education, who gave a brief background of his sojourn to the United States, the work he had undertaken there and his return to Ghana, said he was excited about the fact that new junior high schools (JHSs) were being constructed as part of the projects and programmes being undertaken.
'I am so happy that we are doing something that has not been done in the country. When you come to these junior high schools, there are science laboratories, among other things," he said.
Earlier, Rev. Fordjour congratulated the minister on attaining 60 years, saying that it was the doing of the Lord. "Your life is an embodiment of selflessness, it's an embodiment of service in humility, the reflection of the grace of God and the blessings of God.
"Your life is an inspiration to all of us and we would continue to inspire many others," he said.