Asantehene vows to continue to reward teachers
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has vowed to continue to reward and honour teachers, who accept to work in deprived rural schools.
He said such teachers deserved to be appreciated and encouraged to motivate other workers to accept postings to deprived areas where their services were most needed to achieve uniform development of the society.
The Asantehene was speaking at the third “Otumfuo Teachers’ Award” ceremony held at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi.
A total of 100 teachers selected from all the 10 regions were each presented with 14-inch television set, pair of wellington boots, raincoats, cutlasses, solar lamps, box iron and certificate.
This brings to 550, the number of teachers, who have been rewarded with prizes since the establishment of the awards in 2011.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II said the role of teachers in national development could not be underestimated and therefore the need to do everything to support them to perform.
Efforts at promoting quality education must not be limited to only scholarships and the provision of infrastructure, but should involve serious attention to the welfare of teachers.
He said he was confident that the teachers would be inspired by his modest package to accept to teach in the rural areas to help the underprivileged school children there to compete favourably with their colleagues elsewhere.
The Otumfuo’s Charity Foundation, organizers of the awards’ has been supporting Government’s efforts at promoting effective education and the welfare of teachers.
The Asantehene said over the past 13 years, the Foundation had provided scholarships to more than 3,000 brilliant-but-needy students across the country to pursue educational careers.
More than 1,000 other people had also been assisted to acquire basic training and skills in various vocations.
The Foundation, he said, had additionally constructed 56 school blocks and head teachers’ accommodation, rehabilitated a number of school structures, supplied about 2,000 computers and made available to more than 140,000 students and pupils educational materials including, branded exercise books, chalk and textbooks.
Source: GNA