Professor Ivan Addae-Mensah, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Legon, said on Saturday that the country needed to take drastic measures to reverse the high illiteracy rate to achieve its developmental objectives.

He said results of last year's National Population and Housing Census showed that "43.4 per cent of those who are three years old or more have never been to school and 49.9 per cent of the adult population of 15 years or more are totally illiterate."

Professor Addae-Mensah was addressing more than 300 participants to the 53rd New Year School being organised by the Institute of Adult Education (IAE) of the University, on the theme: "good governance and sustainable national development."

He said the data painted a gloomy picture for the country's socio-economic efforts and a challenge to good governance and the sustenance of democratic principles.

He commended the New Year School, which he said had stood the test of time for 53 years as a "type of public education crucial for national development".

Professor Addae-Mensah charged the participants to avail themselves to the topics listed to justify the huge expenditure incurred in its organisation. He expressed the hope that the output of the school would constitute an important factor in imparting wisdom and knowledge to society.

Professor Kobina Asiedu, Director of the IAE said Ghana should focus on intermediate professional and non-formal technical education to train the large army of unemployed especially JSS leavers.

He said the School was paying attention to distance education for this group of people and called on stakeholders to provide the needed support.

Professor Asiedu spoke against apathy by people in responsible positions to the IAE's functional educational drive and called for a change in attitude. He expressed the hope that the school would provide references to facilitate government's efforts at good governance.

The Chancellor of the University, Oyeeman Wereko Ampem 11, who chaired the function, said good governance was now the cornerstone of political stability and any government who took its people for granted, "shall feel isolated".

He tasked the participants to be forthright in discussing the theme saying, " gone were the days when such views meant interference in the governance of a country."