Manso-Nkwanta (Ash), June 27, GNA - The Amansie West District Assembly has so far constructed 64 school blocks and four teachers' quarters at the cost of 13.5 billion cedis. The assembly had also trained 84 teachers who are presently at post, while 120 and 40 junior and senior secondary school students have been given scholarships.

Mr Ben Kwakye-Adeefe, the District Chief Executive, disclosed these at the 2005 best teacher awards ceremony at Manso-Nkwanta at the weekend.

In all, 51 teachers from primary, JSS and SSS as well as non-teaching staff were honoured and for their prizes, received colour television sets, bicycles, cookers cylinders, certificates and cash. The DCE said the government recognized education as the bedrock of manpower development and had therefore been allocating about 40 per cent of the national budget to the educational sector. Speaking at the ceremony, Mrs Belinda Serwaa Addo, Ashanti Regional Director of Education, underscored the important role of teachers in society and the absolute need to appreciate the efforts they are making to lift educational standards. She said one of the problems confronting education in the district was the high rate of exodus of trained teachers to other districts and therefore appealed to the district assembly to sponsor more teachers to the training colleges so that they come back to work in the area.

She, however, said more qualified teachers would be posted to the district to enhance effective teaching and learning. Mrs. Beatrice Boakye-Ansah Prempeh, the District Director of Education, said with the introduction of the capitation grant, more pupils have been enrolled in schools and advised parents to take advantage of the grant and send their children to school. She commended the assembly, the Amansie West and Atwima-Kwanwoma Rural Banks for their immense contributions towards the awards ceremony. Mr Kofi Krah Mensah, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Amansie West, said 120 million cedis had been spent from his share of the common fund to sponsor 60 brilliant but needy students in senior secondary schools. Nana Opia Mensah, Asantehene's Wirempehene, who chaired the function, called on teachers to eschew laziness, lateness, drunkenness and all other acts of indiscipline so as to be shining examples for the children to emulate. 26 June 06