Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, the former Minister of Finance in President John Evans Atta Mills' NDC government, has intervened to support the renovation of a dilapidated basic school in the Volta region's Anloga district, in line with his Ghanaian dream of seeing every child in Ghana go to school in the best learning and teaching conditions.
His assistance is made possible by the Duffuor Foundation, which he formed, working with the Livingstone Foundation as part of a private partnership to repair the decrepit school in order to fulfil their common belief in supporting children's education at the primary level.
Last Friday, the business magnate took a road trip to the school, where he voiced his dismay at the dreadful state of affairs. of the school's amenities and promised to invest immediately to give it a makeover to improve teaching and learning.
Since its foundation more than 30 years ago, the decaying Trekume basic school, which serves roughly seven distinct villages including Tregui, Trekume, Dosukope, Blemezado, and Azanu, has remained unrenovated.
The school has a rising population of roughly 350 students, but with the current infrastructure, it is able to accommodate them.
Because portions of the flooring and walls have developed significant fissures, and the partially ripped-off windows and roofs cannot enable teaching and learning during the rains, the children now share the area with wild birds and other vermin.
Dr. Duffuor's quick action occurred in response to Mr. Isaac Boni, the school's Headmaster, who rang the bell. The school's infrastructure status is an impending calamity, even as it has a detrimental impact on the students' existing academic performance.
"What we've seen here hasn't pleased us. Dr. Duffuor reminded the community during a groundbreaking ceremony to begin repairs and repair work on the school that "our children should have a more respectable environment to stay in and study in, and I believe we can improve this condition - it must be done."
The project, according to the former governor of the Bank of Ghana, is in accordance with his Ghanaian Dream vision, which aspires to provide equitable chances to Ghanaians in all aspects of their life, including the right to great education.
"We're telling ourselves that the situation we've witnessed today is appalling, and that something has to be done about it." We have students living in air-conditioned classrooms someplace in Ghana here, and we have children staying in crumbling classrooms here (Trekume basic school), yet they will be doing the same examinations. Dr. Duffour posed a rhetorical question: "How will these youngsters accomplish the same results as those in the good environments?"
Repairs to the 6-unit primary classroom block and another 3-unit JHS block are expected to be finished within a year. In addition to the repairs, the school will receive additional auxiliary facilities to make it a state-of-the-art institution.
Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, a leading member of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) who is rumoured to be preparing for the NDC's 2024 flag bearer election, recently announced the "Ahoto business project," which aims to financially empower and relieve NDC party executives in all 275 constituencies across Ghana as part of his larger vision of a "Ghanaian Dream."