Ghana Districts: A repository of all Local Assemblies in Ghana

Feature Content
Feature Content

EDUCATION

U.S. commits $14 million support to basic education in Northern Ghana

The United States Agency for International Development?(USAID) has launched a new five-year, $14.39 million activity to support low-cost?private schools in Northern Ghana.

Date Created : 8/18/2023 : Story Author : Ghanadistricts.com

The activity is USAID’s first foray into Ghana’s private school sector and designed to expand access to 213 select low-cost private schools in northern?Ghana.

A statement from the USAID noted that Grace Lang, USAID Deputy Mission?Director, joined Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, Minister of Education, in Tamale for?the launch of the activity.

“A quality education should not depend on where you live. ?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.”

The activity will support the schools to improve education access, quality, and?learning outcomes for students, and increase private sector investments in?northern Ghana,” USAID Deputy Mission Director Lang said in the statement.

According to the statement, the new USAID activity would increase teacher?certification and retention, strengthen school leadership capacity and quality,?and use a comprehensive investment strategy that would support school?improvement. ?

The statement noted that the activity would also offer affordable financing?options for select low-cost private schools serving disadvantaged communities in?northern Ghana. ?

“The activity is committed to serving populations in the most under-resourced?locations in the northern section of the country.”

“The activity will also strengthen the relationship and regulator capacity of the?Ministry of Education and its agencies in its oversight of private schools,” the?statement added.

It said by the end of five years, USAID anticipated that the?project would strengthen business skills for more than 200 school leaders, equip 400 teacher mentors with evidence-based classroom best practices to teach?another 2,000 teachers, and certify 1,200 untrained teachers. ?

It said the USAID implementing partner, Opportunity International, would also?create a School Capacity Building Fund (SCBF) to assist the targeted schools to?improve operations and become more credit-worthy through catalytic grants.