Dalun (NR), Oct. 5, GNA - Ibis West Africa, an NGO, has implemented a pilot educational programme using the wing school concept to extend free basic education to two districts of the Northern Region to children in remote communities.

The programme known as Alliance for Change in Education (ACE) under Ibis, would provide exercise books, teaching and learning materials and other teaching aids to the children in Gushegu and Karaga districts up to class three as well as giving incentives to recruited teachers for the programme to ensure its sustenance.

Mr Zakaria Sulemana, Programme Coordinator of ACE, announced this in Dalun in the Tolon/Kumbungu District at the passing out ceremony of some 40 community teachers selected and trained to handle children in their respective communities.

He said a consortium of three organisations; School for Life (SfL), the Ghana Education Service (GES) and Ibis were collectively implementing the programme with support from the District Assemblies. He explained that most communities were far away from schools and that Ibis in collaboration with its partners would recruit teachers with the relevant senior secondary school qualification and train them in child approach, participatory methodology and context analysis to be able to handle the children.

Mr Sulemana said the children after receiving education up to class three level would now be mature enough to be able to walk long distances to continue from class four in formal schools so as to improve education in rural communities.

The pilot programme would be launched in the Gushegu District in the first week of November this year and would be extended to other districts after the outcome of the Gushegu/Karaga implementation. Mr Sulemana advised the trained initial teachers to cultivate the right attitude and stay in the classrooms to ensure the sustenance of the programme.

He said Ibis would also help the recruited teachers to re-write their examination papers and would meet the full cost of those who would qualify to enter training colleges.

Mr Mahama Wahab and Mahama Abubakari, DCEs for Karaga and Gushegu pledged their support for the programmes in their districts and advised the recruited teachers to pay more attention on the children to improve the quality of education in the districts. Mr Issah Jawula, Director at the Northern Regional Education Directorate, who chaired the function commended the programme and gave the assurance that the Ghana Education Service and the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports would help such initiatives to succeed.