Accra, Oct. 23, GNA - Nii Armah Ashietey, Greater Accra Regional Minister, has said there was the need for a collective responsibility towards achieving a better and quality education especially with the challenges the sector was facing.

"If we as a nation are desirous of achieving a solid foundation, credible and efficient education system capable of producing the quality of human resource needed to contain the challenges of the new millennium, then a lot of sacrifice, dedication, commitment and hard work is required from parents, teachers, pupils and non-governmental organizations," he said.

He said: "Modern day education requires quality infrastructure and books which are capital intensive and as a corollary, government needs the active support of NGOs and the private sector to partner us in order to provide and promote education in this country".

Nii Ashietey said this when he inaugurated a six unit classroom block with ancillary facilities each for Accra Academy and Amasaman Senior High Technical Schools to help ease the infrastructural challenges facing the schools as result of the new admissions. The two new structures, which cost GHc 227,549.00 each, were the first out of the 33 to be constructed in the Greater Accra Region as part of the emergency school projects.

Throughout the country, about 253 of such projects are ongoing and are expected to be completed in good time to be used by the students. Nii Ashietey therefore cautioned individuals and groups that were politicising issues of education in the country to desist from the act saying "any issue concerning our school children should be a challenge to all".

He urged all to take proper care of the facility to prolong its lifespan adding that government would also provide mono desks to the schools.

Madam Quaye, Director of Pre-Tertiary Education at the Ministry of Education, who represented the Minister of Education, urged contractors working on the rest of the projects to speed up work to ensure the structures were available for use by the students.