Pru West Education Projects under scrutiny as Bono East Minister demands quality and speed

By: Samuel Ayammah

Education infrastructure in the Pru West District is receiving renewed attention, with ongoing renovation works and new classroom blocks expected to help eliminate schools under trees and address furniture needs.

The state of education in the district came to light during an inspection of development projects by the Bono East Regional Minister, Francis Owusu Antwi.

The Pru West District Director of Education, Daniel Lambon, acknowledged that infrastructure remains a challenge but said the ongoing interventions will improve the situation.

“Furniture is no longer the major challenge facing schools in the district. The Member of Parliament has promised to provide additional furniture to augment what the District Chief Executive recently supplied,” he said.

There are efforts to move almost all schools under trees into proper classrooms once current works are completed. However, the district is grappling with a severe teacher shortage.

“More than 30 teachers sought transfer or release this academic year, but only 12 teachers were posted to the district and reported for duty,” it has been disclosed.

The situation has affected the teacher-pupil ratio, with some schools in hinterland communities having only one teacher managing an entire school block.

“It is not easy to redistribute teachers from schools with about four teachers to support deprived schools because some teachers who have spent just two or three years at their current stations resist moving to less comfortable areas,” it was stated.

There is an appeal for more teachers to be posted to the district with the hope that government will soon recruit more teachers to address the shortfall.

Meanwhile, the Regional Minister, Francis Owusu Antwi, expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of some ongoing projects and directed contractors to act.

“The quality of materials used for some windows and doors was not up to standard, particularly at Akrakuka, and all windows and doors there must be replaced within one month,” he directed.

He also observed that the size of whiteboards must be increased to the standard size and that provisions had not been made for persons with disabilities to access the classrooms.

“The contractors must create disability-friendly access and they have accepted to do so,” he said.

On community involvement, Mr. Antwi stressed that “monitoring is a collective responsibility and not the responsibility of the DCE or the assembly team alone.”

Commenting on the pace of work, the Minister said contractors are behind schedule when compared with the expected timeline and have been given two months to catch up, while generally doing their best.

The District Chief Executive for Pru West, Samuel Agyapong, said education remains a key priority under President John Dramani Mahama.

“Education remains the backbone of the country and forms a key part of the programme of President John Dramani Mahama to improve the lives of the people in the district,” he said.

According to him, about six to seven education projects are ongoing, with some already completed and awaiting commissioning.

“Very soon the completed projects will be commissioned and handed over to the schools for use,” he assured.

He acknowledged concerns raised about timelines and the quality of woodwork and said the Assembly will work to ensure the projects are completed on time.

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