Nkoranza North honours teachers as Regional Minister announces housing plan for all 11 districts

The Nkoranza North District Assembly recently held its inaugural District-Based Teachers Awards event to honor outstanding educators across various categories, including Best Kindergarten Teacher, Best Lower Primary Teacher, Best Upper Primary Teacher, Best Junior High School Teacher, Best Senior High School Teacher, and Best Non-Teaching Staff.

The ceremony came together with traditional leaders, education officials, union leaders, teachers, and stakeholders celebrating the hard work and dedication of teachers in the district.

The top honoree of the night was Dongber Yirper Anselm, a 42-year-old Social Studies teacher at Osei Bonsu Senior High School, recognized as the Overall Best Teacher. Dongber received a plaque, certificate, and a brand new motorbike for his outstanding contributions. In his address, Anselm emphasized the importance of remaining committed to students and working as a team, urging fellow teachers to prioritize students' needs and to focus on achieving their goals.

Bono East Regional Minister, Francis Owusu Antwi, delivered a keynote address at the awards ceremony, unveiling a comprehensive plan to provide decent accommodation for teachers across all 11 districts in the Bono East Region. This initiative, prompted by President John Dramani Mahama, aims to address the longstanding accommodation challenges faced by teachers, especially those in deprived areas.

Antwi announced that the new accommodation model would be more improved and sustainable than the traditional teacher bungalows and that all 11 districts in the region have already completed the necessary documentation for the project.

The Regional Minister commended the Nkoranza North District Assembly for organizing the awards and sponsoring educational materials and furniture. He also highlighted the significance of resetting Ghana's education system, stating that it cannot be successful without also resetting the educational sector. Antwi appealed to parents to pay more attention to their children's moral upbringing and to maintain regular communication with schools to monitor academic performance and conduct.

He also promised that any further disturbances would be handled by the Regional Security Council in accordance with due process.

Nkoranza North District Chief Executive, Patrick Effah, praised the teachers for their hard work, often under challenging circumstances, and praised the award winners for their professionalism and commitment. He assured that their honor would serve as an added responsibility to maintain high standards. Effah emphasized that all teachers who show dedication and sacrifice are contributing meaningfully to society and vowed to work closely with the Ghana Education Service, traditional authorities, the Member of Parliament and other stakeholders to improve educational infrastructure and create a conducive environment for teaching and learning.

The Nkoranza North District Director of Education, Stephen Kwasi Botwe, called for greater commitment from teachers, encouraging them to deliver every lesson with a proper lesson plan and teaching materials. He revealed that the district currently faces a teacher deficit of 158, with only 728 teachers available when 886 are required.

This shortage has left some kindergarten classes without teachers. Botwe appealed for more teacher bungalows and additional recruitment to bridge the gap. He praised teachers who manage large classes and use their own resources to support teaching, and assured that supervision by the Directorate remains supportive. Botwe also appealed to parents to actively participate in their children's education by providing needs, monitoring homework, and attending PTA meetings, as well as to traditional authorities to help address issues related to truancy and protect teachers from misconduct.