Education Minister Sets Up a Forum for Education Unions

Prof. Naana Jane Opoku- Agyemang

A Forum aimed at creating an avenue for all unions within the education sector to discuss their common concerns as well as promote the development of education in the country has been inaugurated by the Minister of Education, Prof. Naana Jane Opoku- Agyemang in Accra. Inaugurating the forum, the minister indicated that since assumption of office she realized that there was the need for unions to talk to each other and be on top of issues relating to their welfare as well as the sector. She called on all unions to work in conformity with the laws.

The focus of the forum she explained was prevention. A major part of the strategies of the brainstorming group was to understand the problems at stake by determining the reasons for the industrial actions by employees in the education sector and the common stands in their grievances. The forum she said should be seen to think and plan ahead and devise means to solve the problems as understood.

Touching on the output of work within the sector, the Minister noted that the unions should also be very interested in quality education delivery in the schools and support their members to perform their duties very efficiently.

Prof. Opoku Agyemang called for an open and closer communication between all persons who are sincere about reducing and eventually removing the hurdles in the path way towards true national progress.

The Chairman of Public Services Commission, Mrs. Bridget Katsriku commended the Ministry of Education for setting up such a forum to address the concerns of the unions within the education sector. Mrs. Katsriku noted that it was only through dialogue that issues could be effectively addressed and asked the unions to avail themselves for the opportunity being offered them.

Present at the inaugural ceremony were the Chief Director of the Ministry of Education, Mr. Enoch Cobbinah as well as the President and Chairman of Ghana National Association of Teachers, National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Coalition of Concerned Teachers, University Teachers Association of Ghana, Polytechnic Teachers Association of Ghana, Polytechnic Administrators Association of Ghana among others.