Accra, Sept. 2, GNA - Government is to provide about 1.6 million sets of school uniform to pupils in 57 deprived districts in the country by the end of 2009/2010 academic year.

The fabric for the uniform, estimated to cost GH¢ 11.7 million, would be produced by Printex, a Ghanaian textile manufacturing company. Mr. Alex Tettey-Enyo, Minister of Education, announced this at a press briefing dubbed "Matters Arising" in Accra on Wednesday. He said modalities had been put in place to engage Ghanaian tailors, seamstresses and industrial garment manufacturing companies to ensure the successful implementation of the project.

On teachers, the Education Minister disclosed that government had instituted an incentive package to pay the tuition fee of all teachers pursuing distance learning from next year.

He said the Ghana Education Service (GES) had introduced a quota system to determine the number of personnel to benefit from study leave with pay based on the needs of the Service in relation to courses of study.

Mr. Tettey-Enyo said GES had approved grant for 3,000 qualified teachers to pursue further studies during the 2009/2010 academic year. He expressed concern about teachers who did not apply for permission to go on leave without pay and stressed it amounted to vacation of post and such teachers needed to apply for re-engagement by the Service.

"In considering them for re-engagement, the district education directorates offer them employment at places where their services are needed, but in most cases, they decline such postings, leaving many vacancies unfilled," he said.

Mr. Tettey-Enyo said government was committed to ensuring that exercise books were available to pupils for the 2009/2010 academic year. "The Ministry of Education has concluded the bids for the exercise book contracts. We are in a process of awarding the contracts to successful Ghanaian bidders," he said.