Tamale, Aug. 16, GNA- The Little Flower Early Childhood Development Centre in the Tamale Metropolis is providing free education for 23 pupils who had lost their parents.

Management of the centre is therefore, setting up a scholarship fund for the orphans and children of parents in great distress as a result of sickness and disasters to complete their studies.

Mrs. Anna Maria Fati Paul, Managing Director of the Centre announced this at the 10th graduation ceremony of 72 students comprising 40 girls and 32 boys at the Centre in Tamale on Saturday.

She said the programme sought to prevent high dropout rate among children in the metropolis and address the issue of street children by ensuring that children who passed through the centre stayed in school. Mrs Fati Paul said: "it is heartbreaking to see promising students dropping out of school because of their parents", adding, "education is a human right that improves the quality of life for the individual". She said management of the centre would monitor the progress of such children and support them as they advance through primary, junior secondary school and senior secondary schools.

She said 600 children had graduated from the centre and were performing creditably well in both public and private schools. She said the centre would continue to provide a sound foundation for child education at the pre-school age.

Mrs Alexandra Sopiimeh, Tamale Metropolitan Director of Education reminded Ghanaians that there were challenges in education and not failures.

She noted, "Since education is the key to success, people should not talk of failures because it is an on-going process". Mrs. Sopiimeh who spoke on: "Education - our failures and successes" said for children to succeed in education, parents must provide them with the necessary materials to work with and also instil discipline in them.