The United States of America is investing $14.39 Million in private schools in Northern Ghana to support the government’s efforts towards improving access to quality basic education in the country.

The five-year intervention program dubbed ‘Advancing Partnerships for Improved Learning’ is being implemented by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ministry of Education in 213 selected low-cost private schools in the Northern, North East, Upper East, and Upper West Regions.

As part of the program, some 1,200 untrained teachers in private schools will be trained and certified by the University for Development Studies (UDS). It will also target strengthening school leadership capacity and quality and use a comprehensive investment strategy that will support improvements in the schools.

It is expected that the program will help improve access to quality education for over 52,000 basic school pupils living in underserved communities in Northern Ghana.

It will also offer affordable financing options for selected low-cost private schools serving disadvantaged communities in the country.

Acting Mission Director of USAID, Grace Lang disclosed this while speaking at the launch of the Advancing Partnerships for Improved Learning in Tamale on Thursday.

Ms Lang said “A quality education should not depend on where you live or which school you attend. We want every child to have access to quality education. The $ 14 million activity we are launching today will support low-cost private schools that serve rural and disadvantaged communities”.

She said a survey conducted by the USAID revealed that more than 70 percent of private school teachers in Northern Ghana were either Senior Secondary School certificate holders or Senior High School graduates, noting that it was part of the reasons the program was going to offer training and certification for such teachers.

“In a recent study, the USAID conducted, more than 70percent of the teachers interviewed were Secondary School certificate holders or Senior High School graduates. This partnership will change that through partnering with UDS in Tamale, more teachers will gain their teaching potential” the Acting Mission Director of the USAID noted.

The Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum commended the USAID for implementing the program, saying that it will ensure an equitable education environment in the country.

He said whiles the Ghana Government was spending and investing heavily in public education, “the USAID has also come in to support private low-cost schools. So together we’re creating a more equitable education environment, so USAID we’re grateful.”

Touting the achievements of the various intervention programs in Northern Ghana, the Minister said he was happy to report that the Northern Region was the best-performing region in the National Primary Four (4) Tests, organized by the Education Ministry last year to assess primary four pupils across the country.

He said the success of the region in the examination was due to the huge interventions government has made in the area.

Dr Adutwum was of the firm belief that the Advancing Partnerships for Improved Learning program would further enhance not just access but quality of education in the four regions.

Other implementing partners of the program include Opportunity International, the University for Development Studies, the Ghana National Association of Private Schools, and the Ghana National Council of Private Schools.