Professor Augustus Eduafo, a Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine and Kidney Transplant, United States of America, says the Government’s policy on free Senior High School should be hailed by Ghanaians as it would enhance human resource development.
He said the policy must be commended because majority of parents could not afford to send their children to secondary school to upgrade their skills and knowledge adding that the policy would give them the opportunity to do so.
Prof. Eduafo was speaking during the 58th Speech and Prize- Giving Day of the Swedru Senior High School at the weekend. The celebration was under the theme; “Development of Secondary Education - The Role of Stakeholders”.
Prof. Eduafo said the funding of SHS must not be the sole responsibility of the Government as it was important that every Ghanaian child had secondary education and called on the private sector to help government to fund it. Prof. Eduafo, who is an old boy of the school, urged students to study hard to enable them to chalk higher academic laurels.
On the rampant suicide incident among students, Prof. Eduafo called on the parents to get closer to the children to know their problems and help them find solutions. Mr Kwamena Duncan, Central Regional Minister, Guest of Honour, called on the students to take their destiny into their hands by concentrating on their books to chalk academic excellence.
He assured the board of governors, management, teaching and non- staffs and students of the school that government would never abandon infrastructural development to enhance effective teaching and learning. Mrs Alberta Rig-Stewards, the Headmistress of the school, expressed concern about the encroachment on the school land and appealed to the Ministry of Education and chiefs of Agonaman to help tackle the matter.
She said the school needed more staff bungalows to accommodate the teachers adding that some of the bungalows built 58 years ago by the first President of Ghana, Osagyfe Dr Kwame Nkrumah, leaked profusely.
Mrs Rig-Stewards said the academic performance of the school had been excellent, especially the 2016 West Africa Senior Secondary School Examination making more of her students to gain admission to the universities.