The Campaign for Female Education Association (Camfed) Ghana, has called on the Ministry of Education to accord Guidance and Counseling (GC) a professional status under the Ghana Education Service (GES).

This according to the Association would pave the way for the recruitment of professional guidance and counselling officers.

Camfed has also called for the development of an assessment and supervisory mechanisms for GC staff at the school level, and fuse into the board of internal and external supervisory systems within the GES and the National Inspectory Board.

Mr Alex Kofi Asare, an Education Consultant, made the call at the opening of Camfed Ghana’s third MasterCard Foundation (MCF) Annual Learning Summit (ALS) in Accra.

The MCF/ALS, which is a 10-year partnership between MCF and Camfed Ghana seeks to provide comprehensive support to academically gifted young women in the rural communities within Camfed’s operational regions, with the goal of raising social, political and business leaders for the African continent.

Mr Asare therefore urged the GES to undertake regular training in GC for teachers before the specialised ones were engaged to help enhance the capacity of all students to achieve academic success and personal well-being as studies had shown.

“Studies have shown that schools with a continuum of developmental, preventive, remedial and support services enhance the capacity of all students to achieve academic success and personal well-being,” he said.

Mrs Delores Dickson, the Executive Director of Camfed Ghana, noted that unlocking the potential of critical mass of academically bright yet disadvantages girls and young women from rural Ghana through secondary and tertiary education, enrichment and service leadership opportunities.

She said it would also create a network of visionary educators at high-quality schools and universities who share the objective of inclusive, equitable and high quality education were some of the key objectives of the MCF/ALS.

Mrs Dickson said though it was fashioned around support services, it was also designed to specifically focus on GC.

She observed that GC was a necessary requirement for enhancing academic performance, reducing drop-out and facilitating informed career choices.

“Appreciation of the benefits of guidance and counseling is universal and this explains why discussions on the subject continue to engage the attention of stakeholders,” she said.

Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the Deputy Minister of Education, said GC plays an integral part of both teaching and learning in schools.

He explained that it also provides building blocks for decisions that affect children’s academic, career and socio personal endeavours and therefore called for effective coordination among stakeholders.

“Comprehensive guidance and counselling is critically important for student’s education and development and so there is the need for coordinated efforts to help make it worthwhile for our young students and schools,” he said.

Mr Ablakwa lauded Camfed Ghana for spearheading the campaign of girl- child education.

Professor Jophus Anamuah-Mensah, Former Vice–Chancellor, University of Education Winneba, called on the stakeholders and the public to embrace, and work towards GC to help reduce the cost of education.

This year’s MCF/ALS was on the theme “Mainstreaming Support Services to Students within the Education Sector.”

It brought together representatives from the Ministry of Education, GES, Colleges of Education, National Teaching Council, regulatory and incorporate bodies, guidance and counseling experts, NGO’s, parents, teachers and education administrators to discuss key issues that would enhance education.

Some participants who spoke with the Ghana News Agency said the MCF/ALS is commendable and would help them to objectively discuss issues confronting the educational system.

Presentation of key findings of the scoping and study on the extent to which GC was mainstreamed within the education sector in Ghana, as well as expert panel discussions were some of the activities that marked the 2016 MSC/ALS.