IN ITS bid to contribute towards quality education in Ghana, NtermGhana, a non-profit making organisation in collaboration with Rotary Club of Upper Marlboro, in Maryland, USA, has donated 134 pamphlets to three second cycle schools in the Saboba District of the Northern Region.
Speaking to The Chronicle in Saboba after the donation, Programme Manager for Education at NtermGhana, Mrs. Gladys Djankpa Barkei, said the donation was made possible through her friends in the USA, Mrs. Cleonice Copus and her husband who appealed to Rotary Club of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, USA for support to the NtermGhana’s Mobile Library Project. She used the occasion to pay glowing tribute to Mrs. Cleonice Copus and the husband and the Rotary Club for their generosity.
Mrs. Djankpa who named Education, Development and Health as the thematic areas of NtermGhana’s activities explained that in the education aspect, the organisation supplies schools with teaching and learning materials like books, computers among others.
She said, “In the past, we have been able to donate computers to junior high schools in Saboba and Nkwanta North Districts. We have also been able to undertake mobile library project where we donated books to brilliant but needy students. And this year, we are here to present pamphlets to the Senior High Schools in Saboba District – Wapuli Community Day Senior High, Saboba Technical Institute and Saboba E.P Senior High School. We have donated in all 134 books to these three Senior High schools in the core subjects – English, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies.
It is our hope that these books will stay in the libraries for as many students as possible to be able to use them. We have also provided them with past questions and answers that have been compiled over the years from WAEC [West African Examinations Council] for students to know how to approach questions in their exams.”
Recounting some challenges they have had in the past with previous donations, Mrs. Djankpa lamented that, “Sometimes you donate items to schools and teachers take them to their homes as their personal properties and students do not derive the full benefit from the items. She said in spite of the financial challenges NtermGhana faces; they are committed to doing more to improve upon the quality of education in the area.
“We wish we could donate more books. For instance, in a high school just donating four books in core Mathematics to be in the library won’t do much because the students are over a thousand. And so we are hoping that in the future we will have more finances to be able to donate more books for students to use. We hope that this little support that we have brought down here will be made used of,” she said.
Touching on health, Mrs. Djankpa disclosed that volunteers of the organisation undertake health education on personal hygiene, environmental cleanliness and diseases.
According to her, NtermGhana has also partnered with Access Laboratory in Korl-Bu to undertake screening and vaccination against hepatitis B. She observed that in the rural areas, people contract Hepatitis B which is a viral infection but they attribute it to food poisoning. This, she said has always caused troubles within families. “So we are aiming at educating them to know much about it”, she said.
On development, Mrs. Djankpa admitted that there are challenges confronting the organisation and called for support from potential partners.
She said, “In the development aspect, we have been trying to partner with some organisations to drill boreholes in some communities that do not have portable water. Even though we have not succeeded yet in that aspect, we are still working hard’. We had challenges when we tried partnering with a local organisation. For instance, we secured funding for a project with Rotary Club USA Upper Marlboro branch and were supposed to drill boreholes for some communities – Wayul, Kpanjol and many others. Unfortunately, the organisation that the Rotary Club contacted in Ghana to deliver this project on their behalf turned it down because of the distance of Northern Region from the Central Region. So we lost that project. We are hoping that in the future we will have other organisations that will be willing to come to the countryside to help alleviate the plight of the people.”
Mrs. Djankpa said, “It was due to the passion of Dr. Francis Djankpa, myself his wife, Gladys Djankpa and Nkumpoi Tabiim that the NtermGhana was formed, basically to give back to our community, the little that we may gather from elsewhere. It is our hope that as we go on, we will be able to get more help to bring home.”
The Vice Principal of Saboba Technical Institute, Liwaalmor Bakpiri Moses, Headmaster of Saboba E.P Senior High School, Mr. Fredrick Braimah Abdulai and Headmaster of Wapuli Community Day Senior High, Mr. Fuseini Mohammed who received the donations for their respective schools were grateful for the kind gesture and assured NtermGhana that the books will be put to good use.
Mrs. Djankpa was accompanied by Saboba District Field Officer of NtermGhana, Mr. Nkiikinah S. Jalulah.
Source: The Chronicle|Ghana
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