A four day workshop to pilot the UNESCO guide for mainstream gender equality in Teacher Education Institutions in underway at the Mensvic Grand Hotel in Accra.

Ten African countries from Ghana, Lesotho, Cape Verde, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Tanzania and Liberia are represented in the programme that is coordinated by the Pan African Teachers Center (PATC).

The PATC is the Professional Development component of the Education International Africa Region (EIRAF) which represents Africa’s organized educators of the noble profession, teaching, within EI’s thirty million members’ world wide.

Peter Mabande, PATC Executive Director said his organisation is pleased to be associated with the historic occasion in African Education Service, taking place in Ghana, the pioneer of independence and democracy in Africa.

Mrs. Benedicta Biney, Director General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) who delivered a speech on behalf of the Minister of Education said the specific objectives of the workshop are to enrich and validate the Guide, discuss its applicability and formulate strategies for scaling up its use in countries.

She noted that several studies on gender in education continue to reveal several challenges, globally and locally.

“these challenges include the lack of capacity to effectively articulate gender issues in teacher education policy, strategy, plans, programmes, planning, management and budgeting, monitoring and evaluation, create and sustain institutional enabling environment so that gender issues are viewed in the mirror of teacher education performance indicators, whereby gender is not an “add in” but infused into Teacher Training Institutions (TTI) systems, visions, plans and educational practices. She observed that the analytical study reports revealed that countries are at different levels of achievement in terms of gender parity in education and in the teaching profession, as depicted in teacher training policies and practices in varying cultural, social and economic contexts.

“Against such a diversified background as is in Africa, mainstream gender in teacher education policies and practices would require tapping on the knowledge and understanding about the diversity of contexts, cultures and pedagogical approaches” she said.

The workshop ends on Friday December 20, 2013.