Commenting on the anticipated acceptance speech to be made by the NDC running mate, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Member of Parliament for the North Tongu Constituency, Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has described the NDC running mate as a trailblazer.
He noted that Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang is the only female to be nominated twice as Running Mate by a major Ghanaian political party.
He emphasized the “incoming President”, H.E. John Mahama deserves all the recognition for his consistent belief, trust, and respect for Ghanaian women.
“H.E. John Mahama’s decision has been overwhelmingly hailed as a choice for competence, accomplishment, and integrity. Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang continues to inspire many across the world”.
Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa
Furthermore, the MP indicated that Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang’s impressive track records, especially as Ghana’s Minister for Education from 2013 to 2017, make her a force to reckon with.
He noted that the Federation of African Women Educationalists (FAWE) with its headquarters in Kenya unanimously settled on Prof. Opoku-Agyemang as its President from 2017 to 2023 due to her competency.
Moreover, Hon. Ablakwa indicated that Prof. Naana Jane made Ghana proud by transforming FAWE and leading the organization to win the globally prestigious Al-Sumait Prize for Education.
He revealed that Prof. Naana Jane’s accomplishments as the Chancellor of the Zimbabwean Women’s University In Africa were splendid so the University has pleaded with her to accept her resignation as Chancellor only after she graduates the 2024 year group in August.
Touting the NDC running mate’s qualities, the MP stated that as Ghana’s Minister for Education, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang is best known for her innovative policies and her impeccable integrity.
He emphasized that WAEC data confirms that Ghana’s best BECE results were attained under Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang.
“Prof. successfully abolished the shift system in public basic schools; eliminated over 2,000 schools under trees; introduced the Private BECE to open doors of opportunity for the marginalized; achieved gender parity at the basic education level and reversed the appalling situation of 3 children sharing a textbook to a new ratio of four textbooks per pupil plus free dictionaries”.
Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa
Education Under Prof. Agyemang’s Wing
Moreover, Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa noted that At the secondary level, for four consecutive years with Prof. Opoku-Agyemang at the helm, Ghana was adjudged the best country in WASSCE scores.
He stated that Prof. Naana Jane initiated the construction of 123 famous E-Blocks to expand access and ensure that there was no double track when she served as Minister of Education.
He emphasized that Prof. Agyemang’s E-Block design accentuated STEM, allowing 5 well-equipped labs for General Science, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Computing.
He further noted that these E-Blocks came with stocked modern libraries, assembly halls, and comfortable offices for the teaching staff. He added that every E-Block had a designated 100-seater bus for students and a pickup truck for staff.
The North Tongu MP also indicated that in Prof. Agyemang’s tenure in office as the Minister of Education, 480,000 vulnerable students benefited from her progressively free secondary education intervention.
Praising the visionary leadership of Prof. Agyemang, the MP stated that free sanitary pads for thousands of female learners initiative is an indication that she was ahead of the current debate on period poverty and taxes on sanitary pads.
“Prof. Opoku-Agyemang successfully negotiated the US$ 156 million World Bank-supported Secondary Education Improvement Project (SEIP) and is perhaps one of very few Education Ministers in Africa who left behind millions of dollars she directly generated for her successor. She carried out the most impactful TVET interventions in Ghana’s history”.
Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa
Furthermore, he noted that Prof. Opoku-Agyemang supervised the conversion and elevation of Ghana’s polytechnics to technical universities thereby laying a solid foundation for Ghana’s industrialization.
Hon. Ablakwa noted that Prof. Opoku-Agyemang oversaw the completion of the University of Health and Allied Sciences in the Volta Region and the operationalization of the University of Energy and Natural Resources in the then Brong Ahafo Region.
He noted that the NDC running mate’s love for education informed her decision to upgrade teacher training institutes into full tertiary Colleges of Education (CoE).
He noted that all 38 public CoEs at the time were beneficiaries of massive infrastructural development. Sadly, the projects she couldn’t complete have been abandoned for more than 7 years.
“She undoubtedly ushered in Ghana’s golden era of education and excelled at it without a single scandal”. – Hon. Ablakwa
The North Tongu MP stated that Prof. Opoku-Agyemang is the honest, incorruptible, and competent Vice President Ghanaians have been looking for.
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