The Ghanaian Ministry of Education plans to grant a 20-percent allowance to teachers deployed to rural and remote areas. This new policy is expected to be implemented before the end of the year through a joint-sponsorship by Northern Empowerment Association (NEA), a NGO based in Ghana, and Canada’s the Makbraneth Foundation.
Teachers will receive an additional 20 percent of their basic monthly salaries under the pretext of “rural posting”. GH¢80,000 (USD 39,212) is estimated to cover each quarter of the year.
For decades, teachers in rural Ghana have requested financial incentive to aid their living conditions in disadvantaged and impoverished regions. Despite the government’s consent to the proposal, past attempts to implement the policy have failed due to ministry officials who disapproved the policy for not being the beneficiaries themselves.
However, this time, the Ghanaian government seems determined to reincorporate education in rural areas back into the national agenda by supporting and motivating teachers to improve the lives of students.
As part of publicizing the policy, many government officials have emphasized the importance of national cooperation on the country’s development. Paul Evans Aidoo, a Member of Parliament for Sefwi-Wiawso and Regional Minister of Brong-Ahafo located in south Ghana, said that the government cannot carry out the national development agenda without the help from NGOs, corporations, and philanthropists among other stakeholders.
Furthermore, George Adjei-Hinneh, Regional Director of Education of Brong-Ahafo, called attention to School Management Committees and Parent-Teacher Associations to better propel the basic education system.
Creative Commons Love: Gwyneth Dunsford on Flickr.com
Written by Carolina Shin