Tamale, May 12, GNA-Heads of second cycle institutions in the Tamale Metropolis have suggested to the district assemblies in the area to take up the supply of foodstuffs to boarding schools in the Northern Region.

The Heads said such a measure could assist in solving the problem of intermittent closure of schools due to delay in feeding grants. They further explained that the schools would repay the cost incurred by assemblies when they receive their grants from the government to ensure that there were always sufficient foodstuffs to feed the students all the time.

The heads noted that the delay in receiving feeding grants had resulted in the constant close down of schools in the Region and this had contributed to the poor academic performance of students in the area. The Heads made the suggestions at a round-table discussion with the Tamale Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE), Alhaji Iddrisu Adam in Tamale on Wednesday.

The Tamale Metropolitan Assembly organized the forum for the heads to discuss issues affecting the academic performance of schools in the Region.

The Heads of schools said indiscipline among students was a draw back to the performance of students adding "Supervision has been relaxed in most schools, resulting in truancy and drug abuse and alcoholism in schools." The Heads asked well-placed persons to stop interfering in the disciplinary measures of schools. They said: "protocol admissions" of students was a major worry to them, saying: "These protocol students are sometimes difficult to handle".

Heads of second cycle institutions in the Tamale Metropolis has called for the strengthening of the capacity of basic schools to enable them to lay solid foundation for the turning out of good students for the senior secondary schools.

They also requested government to build more laboratories, libraries and classrooms to solve the problem of over enrolment and to ensure that more teachers were trained to man basic schools.

Alhaji Iddrisu Adam, Tamale Metropolitan Chief Executive, in response to concerns raised, called for the provision of incentive packages for teachers to encourage them to put up their best.

He noted that some of the books donated by foreign organisations to schools were not suitable for teaching and learning in most schools in the country.

Alhaji Adam, therefore, appealed to donors to assist schools financially to enable them to buy the requisite books and materials in the country.

He called on parents and teachers to collaborate efforts to promote education towards poverty reduction in the Region. The Yilkpan-Dana, B.A. Fuseini, Board Chairman of Ghana Secondary School in Tamale, noted that standards of education in the Region was low and said: "We should work extra hard to catch up with the rest of the country and this need a concerted effort of all of us". 12 May 05