Abura Tuakwa (C/R), Aug 10, GNA - Plan Ghana, a child centred non-government organization (NGO), has built a pre-school block for Abura Tuakwa, a farming community in the Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese District.

The block, together with play equipment and furniture, were estimated at 308,867,216 cedis.

Mr Jacob Turkson, Mankessim Programme Area Manager of Plan Ghana, said in an address at the inauguration that the objective of the NGO was to ensure 80 per cent of children aged 13 to 15 years in its sponsored communities obtained good grades in the Basic Education Certificate Examination. In furtherance to this objective, the NGO has decided to give the pre-school education, the foundation of the child's education, a special attention. The NGO has also put in place measures to build the capacity of teachers to enable them improve upon their teaching and also to provide the children with books and stationery. Plan Ghana is also making efforts to support District Directorates of Education in its programme areas to step up supervision of schools, organize open days, provide prizes for Best Teacher Award ceremonies and to organize School Performance Appraisal Meeting to deliberate on performance of pupils after examinations. Mr Turkson said projects initiated by Plan Ghana were done through sponsorship packages and the pre-school facility at Tuakwa was solely funded by one of the sponsors called Mr Scot Bryson from the United States and expressed gratitude to him.

Mr Sven Coppens, West Africa Regional Programmes Support Manager based in Dakar, Senegal, commended the healthy collaboration existing between Plan Ghana, District Assemblies, District Directorates of Education and the communities and urged these partners to use it to promote quality education of the child.

Ms Rebecca Araba Neizer, Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese District Director of Education, expressed concern about why some children were not attending school despite the introduction of the Capitation Grant. She appealed to the assemblies to enact by-laws instituting severe sanctions on parents who did not ensure that their children were in school.

Plan Ghana sponsors 44 communities in Mfantseman and Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese districts.