Dr. Clement Abas Apaak
The Ministry of Education has conveyed its condolences to the families of the seven Lawra Senior High School students who lost their lives in a tragic canoe accident in the Upper West Region.
A statement signed by the Deputy Minister for Education, Dr. Clement Abas Apaak, indicated that the bodies of the seven students who lost their lives, five girls and two boys, have since been retrieved by teams from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Ghana Police Service, and the Ghana Education Service.
According to him, the Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu has instructed the Director General of the Ghana Education Service to convene an urgent meeting with the Regional and District Directors of Education and the headmaster of the school, and to report back urgently.
“We share in the grief of the affected families and the entire school community. Our thoughts and prayers are with them in this extremely difficult time. As the Ministry awaits a full report from the Ghana Police Service, we wish to assure Ghanaians that we will continue to do our best to ensure the safety and security of our students,” the statement stressed.
The incident occurred on Saturday morning, June 14, 2025, when a group of students, during their regular jogging routine, attempted to use a canoe to cross to the opposite side of the river, and the canoe capsized.
Seven out of the 10 students from Lawra Senior High School in the Upper West Region lost their lives in the Dikpe River canoe accident, while three students survived.
FROM Eric Kombat, Lawra