Kumasi, April 1, GNA - Paapa Owusu Ankomah, Minister of Education, Science and Sports, has said that the government was well focused to give the country a new educational reform that would be relevant to the socio-economic needs of the society and be responsive to the rapidly changing technology and information driven global economy.

He said among other policy objectives of the reforms would be an expansion of the number of institutions offering second cycle courses where secondary school and technical vocational education training institutions would have to adapt to offer the comprehensive education to be implemented.

Paapa Ankomah who was speaking at the 55th speech and prize-giving day of Opoku Ware Secondary School (OWASS) in Kumasi on Saturday said very serious consideration would be given to the expansion of technical education.

The theme for the celebration was "Ghana @ 50 - Revamping Education for National Growth and Development".

The Minister said some secondary and technical schools would be merged and well resourced to run purely technical programmes adding that some technical and vocational structured apprenticeship system would also be put in place.

In this regard, he said, a structured four-year apprenticeship system would be developed, with both practical and theoretical training stressing that the government would soon roll out a programme to identify all employees who would be capable of providing an apprenticeship programme under the reforms to provide uniform training standards.

Paapa Ankomah admonished the students to be law abiding and studious and should know that they were in school to pursue that agenda with all their strength and energies and advised them to desist from any immoral and socially condemnable behavioural acts such as smoking, alcoholism, robbery and risky sexual experimentation.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu, Asantehene, in an address read on his behalf by Bantamahene, Baffour Owusu Asare Amankwatia V, urged the students to be disciplined and keep to their books.

Mr Stephen Anokye, Headmaster, said the school shared joy with all schools nation-wide and paid tribute to the founding authorities of all institutions for providing the facilities and maintaining the structures for the education and formation of young people.

He told the Minister that the school was ready to take up the challenge of quality educational delivery when given conducive and sustained support system at all levels and commended the government for funding the on-going library, dormitory block and also completing works in the rehabilitation of students' bathrooms and toilets.

Touching on the 2006 West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), the Headmaster said all the 593 candidates who sat for the examination passed in at least four subjects, 99.7 per cent of the candidates also passed in at least six subjects required for entry into tertiary institutions.

Mr Anokye said it was unfortunate that 37 candidates had their results in English Language cancelled for reasons determined by the West African Examination Council (WAEC). He, however, said a Board of Governors Committee was investigating how that happened.