SIC Life Savings and Loans assists deprived basic schools
The State Insurance Company Life Savings and Loans Limited (SIC Life S&L) has presented educational materials to 25 deprived basic schools in the Bawku West, Nabdam and Talensi districts in the Upper East Region.
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The materials, made up of 5,200 exercise books and 150 dual desks, were given to Boya, Soliga, Kongo, Datuku, Sawaliga, Goriko primary schools and the Saint Thomas Aquinas Primary School at Gbeogo.
The Boya-Kpalsako Basic School, that lacks basic teaching and learning materials, particularly desks and good classroom blocks, received 150 dual desks which cost GH¢40,500, while the remaining schools took delivery of the 5,200 exercise books.
The gesture was part of the company's corporate social responsibility programme to complement government efforts at providing teaching and learning materials to less-endowed schools in rural communities.
Separate functions
At separate functions to present the materials to the schools last Monday, the Managing Director of SIC Life S&L, Mr Richard Appietu, indicated that every year the company set aside some funds to support education and health needs of deprived communities in the country.
The Board Chairman of SIC Life S&L, Mr Aaron Anafure, pledged on behalf of the company to continue to assess the needs of other deprived schools and communities in the Upper East Region for support in the areas of education and health.
The Bawku West District Human Resource Officer of the Ghana Education Service, Mr Imoro Akugre, said there were 51 junior high schools and 81 primary schools in the district, and described the company’s gesture to aid the government’s efforts at providing education materials for the schools, as a step in the right direction.
The Member of Parliament for Bawku West, Mr Cletus Avoka, urged parents in the district to take advantage of such interventions by the government and corporate institutions to send their children to school.
The Bawku West District Chief Executive, Mr Simon Agbango, said the gesture followed appeals made by the Boya community to the government and public-spirited organisations to help provide educational materials to deprived schools in the area.
Situation at Boya-Kpalsako Basic School
A visit to the Boya-Kpalsako Primary and Junior High School, during the presentation, showed that the primary one pupils with a population of 104, were without desks, while first-year students of the JHS attended classes in a mud hut, making the learning environment not conducive.
Established 40 years ago, the school has a total population of 718 pupils, with 102 in the Junior High School (JHS).
According to the school’s authorities, because of lack of furniture, the pupils usually carry along mats to school to sit on them on the floor to write during teaching and learning.
Consequently, some of the pupils complained of chest pains while others claimed they usually slept during classes period as a result of the poor learning environment.
Classes under trees
Pupils in kindergartens one and two are not spared the ordeal, as they attended classes under trees. The roof of the other classroom blocks leaked whenever it rained, while other classrooms had no standard windows for proper ventilation.
The Headteacher of the school, Mr Simon Amidini, appealed to other corporate institutions to come to the aid of the school to improve on the school’s teaching and learning environment.