TWIFO PRASO SHS GETS NEW FACILITIES (PAGE 55)

Story: Joe Okyere & Nehemia Owusu Achiaw, Twifo Praso

THE President, John Agyekum Kufuor, has inaugurated a GH¢2,200 facility for the Twifo Praso Senior High School under the model school project and challenged the students to build a high reputation of outstanding performance in academic and co-curricular activities.
The model school programme was initiated by the President, using HIPC funds to provide each district with at least one model senior high school of grade one status to give equal opportunity to the youth throughout the country to access high quality education in their respective districts.
Inaugurating the project at Twifo Praso in the Twifo-Hemang-Lower Denkyira District in the Central Region on Tuesday, President Kufuor said the project testified to the government’s commitment to human resource development.
The President said human resource development was one of the government’s three priority areas that were driving the national agenda towards the attainment of a middle-income status.
He said already the government had provided second-cycle institutions in the district with infrastructure, while basic schools had been given adequate teaching and learning materials, with pupils benefiting from the Capitation Grant and that the School Feeding Programme had also been introduced in schools at Agosua, Nyankomase and Abrago.
President Kufuor said to increase the number of health sector workers in the district, the government had approved the establishment of the Health Assistants Training School at the old site of the Twifo Praso Senior High School.
He entreated the authorities of the Twifo Praso Senior High School and the district assembly to ensure routine maintenance of the facilities and guard them jealously for the benefit of future generations of the district.
The President demanded from the students all-round outstanding performance in academic and co-curricular activities within the community and reminded them of the need to ensure good conduct and discipline.
President Kufuor said another batch of communities was also going to enjoy electricity supply under the self-help rural electrification project.
On the provision of a mini dam on the River Pra, he said there would be a corresponding City Project to house over 500,000 people, adding that the project would open up the district for rapid socio-economic development.
He said the district was also benefiting from the provision of 15 kilometres of town roads and that three kilometres of the Twifo Praso town roads had been included.
He reminded the people of the need to ensure free, fair and credible elections and called on all, irrespective of their political party affiliation, tribe, religion or gender, to work hard to ensure credible elections that everyone would be proud to acknowledge as meeting all the positive conditions that the nation had set.
The Minister of Education, Science and Sports, Professor Dominic K. Fobih, said since the inception of the model school programme, enrolment had increased in the beneficiary schools as a result of the tremendous improvement in their infrastructure.
He said, for instance, that in the 2005/2006 academic year, senior high school enrolment was 314,310, shooting up to 376,049 in 2006/2007.
The Headmaster of the school, Mr Mike Kojo Afadzi-Hayford, thanked the President for the facilities and said they would enhance education delivery in the district.
He also thanked the chiefs of the area for releasing 250 acres of land for the project.
The Omanhene of the Twifo-Hemang Traditional Area, Otumfuo Amoa Sasrakorie II, who chaired the function, commended the government for its commitment towards the uplift of education in the district.