ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
In addition, 30,000 teachers were trained in ICT under the Basic School Computerisation Programme, bringing the total number of teachers trained under the programme to 50,000.
SECONDARY EDUCATION Mr.
Speaker, Secondary education was plagued with a number of challenges, notably lack of access, leading to a poor transition rate from JHS to SHS.
We are vigorously confronting these challenges.
Under our programme to establish 200 Senior High Schools, I can report that 123 are currently being constructed.
But permit me to place this project in a broader perspective.
The first secondary school was established in Ghana 140 years ago, in 1876.
Between that date and 2012, the number of public secondary schools established was 526.
The 123 schools that are being implemented right now will create more than 200,000 new places in the system, thus making the Community Day Schools Intervention the biggest ever expansion programme in the entire history of secondary education in Ghana.
It is because of this programme that 16-year-old Apim Shulamite is now the Assistant School Prefect of the Atta Mills Community Day School in Otuam.
After completing JHS, Apim, who once dreamt of becoming a nurse, had to stay home for a year due to lack of access to a secondary school.
Apim’s parents are settlers from Somanya.
Her father is a taxi driver and her mother sells second-hand clothing.
During the year that she stayed at home, Apim sold waakye and worked in a chop bar.
Because of the Community Day Schools intervention, students like Apim are able to go from limited prospects to the fulfilment of personal dreams that ultimately benefit the entire nation.
Additionally, under the Secondary Education Improvement Programme (SEIP), 10,400 students benefitted from scholarships.
60% of the beneficiaries are young women, like Gertrude Ahyia Yeboah, who is currently a student at St.
Augustine’s SHS in Bogoso in the Western Region.
5 TERTIARY EDUCATION Mr.
Speaker, Enrolment in tertiary institutions increased by 6.3% for Universities and 8.9% for Polytechnics.
In November of last year, I inaugurated the main campus of the University for Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) at Ho, which, in just three years of its establishment, has achieved many remarkable success stories.
So far more than 2,300 students have been enrolled.
Associated with the enrolment is also the creation of 816 direct jobs for teaching and non- teaching staff of UHAS.
But those are just numbers.
Let me tell you about one of those 2,300 students: Dzidzor Kwamuar from Fodome-Helu.
She lost her mum when she was 10 years old.
When she counted herself along with her 13 siblings, those being her father’s children, there didn’t seem to be any hope of standing out.
Thankfully, an uncle took care of her through JHS and SHS.
She was admitted to Aburi Girls and completed her studies there in 2014 only to find that despite being qualified, she could not attend medical school due to inadequate access.
Now, with the opening of the University for Health and Allied Sciences, Dzidzor is indeed standing out.
This access has made a tremendous difference in her life, and it will also make a difference in the lives of Dzidzor’s future patients.
Speaker, Progress has been made at the University of Energy and Natural Resources, which has so far admitted 2,685 students and created 315 teaching and non-teaching jobs.
The bill for the establishment of the University of Environment and Sustainable Development has been passed and I have appointed an implementation team to assist the Ministry of Education in realising this vision.
In fulfilment of our pledge to ensure that each region in Ghana has at least one public university, we are on course to begin construction this year at Donkokrom in the Afram Plains and Somanya, all in the Eastern Region.
Speaker, In furtherance of our policy to convert polytechnics to technical universities, six (6) have met the 16-point criteria and have been recommended for immediate conversion.
They are the Kumasi, Accra, Koforidua, Ho, Sunyani, and Takoradi Polytechnics.
The remaining four polytechnics will be assisted by a special arrangement to support them with infrastructure, equipment and the strengthening of their governance structure to enable them meet the conversion criteria in the shortest possible time.
Speaker, The abolition of the quota system for enrolment in colleges of education has increased admissions by 63 per cent.
6 This has created access for many students who otherwise would not have had the opportunity.
To assist teacher trainees and finance their education, following the cancellation of the teacher trainee allowances, I have asked the Ministry of Education to direct the Student Loan Trust to register trainees on their campuses and disburse student loans to them.
This new system allows us to reinvest in the education of the next generation of teachers and students.
To fulfil the policy of providing Colleges of Education in under-served areas and to expand access to teacher training, Government is absorbing into the public stream the following colleges - !
Saint Ambrose College of Education, Dormaa District !
Al-Farak College of Education, Wenchi District - this will become our first ever Islamic College of Education !
Gambaga College of Education, East Mamprusi District !
Vincent College of Education, Yendi Municipality !
Bia Lamplighter College of Education, Bia District.
Two other private colleges will be absorbed in the Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Regions to fulfil the initiative of providing a college of education in under-served areas.
In addition, work will begin on three new Colleges in the Greater Accra, Central and Northern Regions.
Speaker, Last year, we worked to improve the skills of in-service teachers.
In 2016, we are going one step further by enhancing the education of pre-service teachers by giving them the skills and tools they need to excel in the classroom, and prepare our children for a bright and prosperous future.
We are doing this through the Transforming Teacher Education and Learning (T-TEL) Programme, which aims to impact 35,000 teachers over four years.
Central to achieving this are the 38 Colleges of Education.
7 HEALTH Mr.
Speaker, At Independence, life expectancy was 47 years.
Today, life expectancy has increased by 14 years.
This increase is due to advances in medicine, improvements in health infrastructure and increased numbers of health personnel.
Not only are we living longer in our adult years, more infants are living to see those years.
According to the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey, there has been a drastic decrease in the rates of infant mortality and under-five mortality.
Over the last decade, under-five mortality has decreased from 111 to 60 per 1,000 live births.
Infant mortality dropped by almost 30% from 64 to 41 per 1,000 live births during the same period.
The mothers of these children are also surviving during pregnancy and after childbirth because antenatal and intra partum and postnatal care have improved.
EFFICIENT HEALTH FINANCING Mr.
Speaker, We are poised to invest heavily in the coming years in education and preventive healthcare for the treatment of chronic diseases due to lifestyle choices- diseases such as Hypertension, Diabetes, High Blood Cholesterol, and Obesity.
The investment in preventive health is even more prudent as our nutritional habits continue to change.
Speaker, The double burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases raises an even more fundamental question about sustainable healthcare financing.
This is precisely why I constituted a Technical Committee to make proposals that will lead to a fundamental redesign of the National Health Insurance Scheme.
2015 saw an active NHIS membership of 11.2 million (41% of the population).
Outpatient Utilisation of the National Health Insurance Scheme rose to 29.6million in 2014 from 597,000 in 2005.
For us, this undeniable pattern of increased utilisation of healthcare insurance bears ample testimony to the confidence that our population continues to have both in the Scheme and in the health system.
It is also the reason why questions about the adequacy of the funding mechanisms cannot be ignored.
To this end, Government expects the team of technical experts to propose for Government’s consideration, fundamental reforms that will touch on areas such as equity, premiums, and expansion of the revenue base, fraud, benefit packages and procurement of medications.
Speaker, I want to make medication affordable for all Ghanaians.
That is why I want our local Pharmaceutical Companies to produce as much medication as possible right here in Ghana.
To that end, we have disbursed more than GH¢50million cedis to assist them in doing so.
8 Through this, we hope to achieve an uninterrupted supply of anti-retroviral drugs for HIV and AIDS patients.
There are also innumerable other associated benefits to this strategy, not least of which is the creation of more jobs in Ghanaian companies.
We have here with us today, Samuel Amo Tobbin, the Executive Chairman of the Tobinco Group, which was one of the companies that benefitted from Government’s support to the pharmaceutical industry.
The funds were disbursed through the Export Development and Agriculture Industrial Fund (EDAIF).
With the support received, Tobinco has also increased its production portfolio by 150%.
The company produces analgesics, antibiotics, antiretroviral and various syrups for the local market and also for export to Niger, Gambia, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Speaker, One cannot speak of health without speaking of physical exercise.
There is a need to return Physical Education or Sports to the school curriculum.
The current situation where PE and Sports has been de-emphasised in the academic curriculum is, in the long run, extremely costly.
It directly impacts the health outcomes of students in the area of obesity and other such illnesses that arise from a sedentary lifestyle.
It is very easy to see that the benefits far outweigh the costs.
I have asked the Ministers of Education, Health and Sports to initiate stakeholder discussions to ensure the adequate reintegration of Sports back into the school system.
Speaker, In October of last year, 12 people in the West Gonja District in the Northern Region were affected by Yellow Fever.
In December of last year, there was an outbreak of Pneumococcal meningitis that started in the Brong Ahafo region.
These remind us that public health emergencies are not to be taken lightly.
They are an ever-present possibility.
Ghana has been commended numerous times by the international community for being on the frontlines during the Ebola crisis.
As others were standing still or, worse, stepping back because of fear, we stepped forward and took control of the situation, helping to mobilise efforts that ultimately helped contain the virus.
The World Health Organisation has declared the Zika virus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Numerous cases of the virus have been reported in Brazil, the United States and other countries in the Americas, as well as in parts of Europe and Africa.
The Ministry of Health, acting through its agencies has started coordinating public education programmes on the prevention of the Zika virus.
The Ministry is also keeping health facilities on alert with timely messages on transmission patterns, associated signs and symptoms, methods of prevention and emergency preparedness planning.
9 I assure the people of Ghana that Government is fully prepared and equipped to deal with this and any other public health issue that might arise.
HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE FOR BETTER HEALTHCARE Mr.
Speaker, Our healthcare system has improved tremendously.
We continue to invest heavily in the sector to ensure an even better system because as a social democratic Government, we believe that a healthy people make a wealthy nation.
It is for this core reason that over the past few years we have invested over US$2billion in health infrastructure, equipment and human resource.
We project to add 6,000 more beds to Ghana’s existing stock by the end of 2018 when the programme is completed.
Presently, there are two Teaching Hospitals, three Institutional Hospitals, four Regional Hospitals, fourteen District Hospitals, dozens of Polyclinics and Health Centres, as well as hundreds of CHPS compound projects all at various stages of completion.
Speaker, Construction of the University Hospital at Legon, upgrading and rehabilitation of the Ridge Hospital, and the second phase of the Tamale Teaching Hospital expansion project are progressing steadily.
The Wa Regional Hospital which commenced in October 2012 is presently 70% complete.
It is part of the US$339million, 8-hospitals project.
Work on the following hospitals is also progressing: !
250-bed Regional Hospital in Kumasi-Sewua !
60-bed District Hospital in Salaga !
60-bed District Hospital in Tepa !
60-bed District Hospital in Nsawkaw !
60-bed District Hospital in Konongo-Odumasi !
100-bed Municipal Hospital in Atomic-Accra.
Rehabilitation of the 295-bed Bolgatanga Hospital is progressing satisfactorily.
Work on a new modern Emergency Department for the Korle-bu Teaching Hospital is 90% completed.
A 12-bed intensive care unit (ICU) for the department of surgery has been refurbished and equipped.
Six district hospitals with integrated IT systems are currently being designed, constructed and equipped at an estimated cost of US$175 million.
The beneficiary communities are Sekondi-Takoradi, Abetifi District, Garu District, Kumawu District, Fomena District and Dodowa District.
Speaker, 10 I have requested the Minister for Health to convert the Volta Regional Hospital into a modern Teaching Hospital befitting the status of a University hospital for use by the University of Health and Allied Sciences in the Volta Region.
The continuation of the US$264million National Medical Equipment Replacement Programme which has, so far, provided diagnostic and treatment equipment for over 150 hospitals nationwide will ensure adequate provision for the much-needed retooling of the Regional Hospital in the Volta Region.
Speaker, We are training more health care professionals.
We are improving on the conditions of their service so that we may retain them to work in Ghana.
Umar Mahmoud Mogtar worked as a farm hand, but he had always dreamt of becoming a health professional.
His opportunity came when a health-training institute was opened in Lawra in the Upper West Region and now he is on course to realise his dream.
We are providing and building a better health infrastructure and providing more modern equipment to meet the current and future needs of our population and people, like Mercy Pomaa, who gave birth at the Nkrankwanta Polyclinic in January of this year, because Mercy’s previous pregnancy went through Caesarean section.
Her condition with this pregnancy was delicate, one that could ordinarily only be undertaken by a higher-level healthcare facility.
Having access to a capable and well- equipped polyclinic nearby decreased the travel time necessary for Mercy to access medical attention throughout the pregnancy and, also, when it came to time to deliver, the establishment of a new polyclinic in Nkrankwanta ensured that she delivered safely.
Today she is a proud mother of a safe and sound baby because a modern polyclinic was built in her community.
Stories like this should be ordinary and expected, not exemplary, and we are working hard to make it so.
I firmly believe that Ghana’s health system has been placed permanently on the right trajectory, and that it will be the healthcare system that other nations on the African continent will emulate and strive to duplicate.
Speaker, The Ghana AIDS Commission has successfully coordinated implementation of the National HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan 2011-2015.
Adult HIV prevalence has stabilised over the past 3 years.
The current prevalence of 1.4% reflects declining new HIV infections and reduced morbidity and mortality among Persons Living with HIV.
Through targeted prevention strategies, new HIV infections have declined.
We have seen a consistent reduction in new HIV infections from a baseline of 16,200 new infections to 11,356 in 2014.
A 30% decline over the past 5 years.
11 We have been successful in reducing annual AIDS deaths by 43%.
Through collaborative efforts to eliminate Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV with advocacy at the highest level, we have achieved over 50% reduction of transmission of HIV from mother-to-child.
81% of pregnant women receive PMTCT services.
66% of infected pregnant women receive treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
The prevalence of HIV among exposed babies has reduced drastically to 8% at birth and 21% after breastfeeding; down from 32%.
The Ghana AIDS Commission and its stakeholders have agreed on priorities for the new National Strategic Plan 2016-2020 towards achieving the 90-90-90 fast-track targets for Ghana (90% of PLHIV know their status, 90% of PLHIV on Antiretroviral treatment and 90% achieve immune suppression).
These priorities include strengthening of strategic information and health systems, as well as community empowerment to scale up HIV testing, treatment and targeted behaviour change.
We will strive to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2017 and meet the needs of adolescents and youth.
12 SOCIAL PROTECTION Mr.
Speaker, We recognise that while carrying out structural reforms to achieve fiscal stability, many vulnerable families and households that are below the poverty line, could suffer further deterioration in their quality of life.
For this reason, Government takes its social protection policies very seriously.
We have made remarkable gains in the Gender, Children and Social Protection sector by strengthening the legal and policy framework, effectively mainstreaming gender concerns, and increasing child rights protection.
Cabinet has approved five important policies to strengthen our Gender, Children and Social Protection programmes - the Child and Family Welfare Policy; the National Gender Policy; the Social Protection Policy; the Justice for Children Policy and the School Feeding Policy.
Other critical pieces of legislation designed to strengthen our social protection programmes, such as the Affirmative Action Bill, the Ageing Bill, the Domestic Violence Regulations, Adoption and Foster Care Regulations, have all been finalised and validated.
These Bills and the Regulations will be presented to this House this year, to be enacted into law.
In addition, we are also implementing programmes to protect the elderly.
The new EBAN card introduced by the Ministry has gained acceptance in many institutions, and the elderly who present the cards at bus stations, banks, hospitals and other public places are given priority in order of service.
So far, over 14,000 cards have been issued in 7 regions, with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection set to issue an additional 9,000 to conclude the first phase.
Speaker, We also continue to work to improve the opportunities available to persons with disability.
It has been proven over and over again that “disability is not inability.”
Our Minister for Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs, Dr.
Seidu Danaa, is a living testimony of the veracity of this statement.
He performs his duties just as effectively as the other members of my Cabinet.
Ivor Greenstreet, for many years General Secretary of the CPP, and now Presidential Candidate of the party, is also a testament to the fact that disability should not be allowed to be a bar to achievement.
It is estimated that persons with one form of disability or other constitute roughly 10% of our population, meaning that about 2.6 million of our compatriots fall into this category.
I am of the opinion that marginalisation of such a huge segment of the population is not only unconscionable and impractical, but also unwise.
Many governmental and charity institutions are providing skills training for persons with disability to improve their opportunities in the world of work.
13 Under the Skills Development Fund (SDF), support has been provided to the Ghana Society for the Physically Disabled to procure a modern automated chalk moulding plant in order to enhance the production of chalk at their factory.
This support will allow the organisation to meet the standard required by the Ghana Education Service.
Training was also provided for the Lakeside Cross Disability Self-Help Group by the Animal Research Division of CSIR in animal husbandry, with the aim of enhancing their livelihoods.
To create further opportunities for persons with disability, I have requested that the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) increase the disability grant from 2% to 3%; a 50% increase for the current fiscal year.
This formula is soon to be presented to the members of this House for your approval.
The moratorium for disabled access to public buildings pursuant to the Persons with Disability Act of 2006 expires this year.
The National Council on Persons with Disability (NCPD) has developed the Ghana Standards on Accessibility Designs for implementation.
This will enable owners of public buildings to provide accessibility to buildings for disabled persons.
Speaker, Last year, on July 23, I became the first sitting president to pay a formal visit to a Ghanaian prison.
Joining the Prison Council, officers and inmates of Nsawam for the launch of Project Efiase, opened my eyes to the deplorable conditions that exist in our prisons.
As a follow- up to my visit, the Prisons Council is working on a new block at Nsawam specifically designed to decongest the prison, for which construction will begin this year.
Speaker, In order to empower head porters – kayayei - and reduce their vulnerability, we have set up coordinated gender-based response centres at Mallam Atta and Agbogbloshie markets as a pilot to provide humanitarian support, counselling services, and psycho-social support to kayayei and market women.
We have also registered a 1,000 of the kayayei free onto the NHIS in order to enable them access quality healthcare.
In addition, a micro-finance credit programme for alternative livelihoods for market porters will also be launched.
Speaker, Government progressively expanded the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme from 1,640 beneficiary households in 2008, to 71,000 in January 2013.
As at November 2015, LEAP had been expanded to 144,980 beneficiary households.
The cash grants have also been increased this year.
This has helped beneficiaries to not only address their critical needs, but also to invest in income-generating ventures that supplement family finances.
I will share with you two such examples of this.
42-year old LEAP beneficiary Zenabu Sumaila, from Ninkogo in the Pusiga district of the Upper East region, has invested her grant into pig farming.
Before that, she had no meaningful source of livelihood.
Zenabu used to help her husband tend a small farm but when he died, it threw her and her two children into abject poverty.
14 She had to rely on the kindness of the people in her community for virtually everything.
Even the Chief assisted her in feeding her household.
The lack of an income source also meant that her children could not attend school regularly and the family could not afford healthcare.
After receiving her cash grants on a number of occasions, Zenabu started saving and she invested in animal rearing.
She started with one piglet and she now has more than ten.
She has been able to supplement her cash grants with income generated from selling the piglets.
She is now able to buy enough food for her household.
Her children are attending school regularly and by virtue of being a LEAP beneficiary, Zenabu was also able to register on the National health Insurance Scheme free of charge.
Another LEAP beneficiary, Awenemi Apogyanga, from Sumbrungu Kulbia in the Bolgatanga Municipality, proved to be just as enterprising.
A widow, Awenemi used to try to make ends meet by using the loom that she owned to weave kente.
The money this brought in was not enough to sustain her household so her children would skip school to do part-time work to make enough money to buy material so she could sew and sell more kente.