The upper East Regional Minister, honourable Stephen Yakubu has said education is the key that unlocks the door to a higher future and the foundation upon which we built our personal and professional aspirations which is also the driving force behind societal progress and as a government the are committed to providing quality education for all Ghanian children, regardless their background or location.

He said the free Senior High School Policy has made education more accessible to thousands of students from underprivileged families, opening doors of opportunities that would have otherwise closed.

The regional minister said government is also working hard to improve infrastructure and facilities in the schools, attract and retain quality teachers, and provide students with access to technology and other learning resources. However honourable Stephen Yakubu said education is not solely responsibility of the government, it’s requires the active involment of parents, teachers, old students the community as a whole adding that parents play a crucial role in supporting their children’s education , by providing them with nurturing and supportive environment, encouraging their studies and instilling in them a love of learning. Teachers, the unsung heroes of our education system, he said are the ones who guide and mentor our students, imparting knowledge and skills, and shaping their minds adding that their dedication and commitment to their students’ success are invaluable. He urged the school community at large to also take the responsibility of supporting their schools by creating an environment that fosters learning and by providing opportunities for students to engage in extracurricular activities that enrich their educational experience.

The regional minister said all this in a speech read for him by the Kasena Nankana municipal Chief executive, honourable Joseph Adongo on the occasion of the 63rd speech and prize giving day celebration of Navrongo Senior High School (NAVASCO) and the 6th sponsored one by the 1982 group of the old students popularly called Nabia.

The regional minister, honourable Stephen Yakubu who is also an old Nabia, said NAVASCO is the beacon of hope and inspiration for the people of the upper east region adding that the the school commitment to excellence is a driving behind the region’s progress and he is confident NAVASCO will continue to produce exceptional individuals who will shape the future of the region and the nation.

Source : gbcuraonline.com

The Navrongo Senior High School (NAVASCO) which opened in 1960 and referred to as the light of the north has produced a lot of intellectuals who are spread over the world occupying very very sensitive and important positions who are also competing amongst themselves in providing the developmental projects of the school.

On this note the 1982 group has been sponsoring the organization of the school’s speech and prize giving day celebrations for the past six years and also sponsored the construction of hospital, Mosque, refurbishment of the school dining hall and kitchen and supported brilliant but needed fellow Nabias to various tertiary institutions .

All these projects were commissioned on 11th November 2023 by National and global presidents on this year’s speech and prize giving day celebration which is also the sch’s 63rd speech and prize giving day.

In her welcome address, the dynamic Headmistress of the Navrongo Senior High School known as NAVASCO, MS Mercy Babachuweh said currently the school is having 137 teaching staff and 66 non teaching staff which is woefully inadequate because they still need three teachers for the visual arts department and 20 non teaching staff for the smooth running of the school. Interms of enrollment, she said currently the first years are 572, second years are 631 and the 3rd years are 786 bringing the total to 1,989 students.

The Headmistress said the Nabia global president set up a performance improvement committee to look into academic performance and to make recommendations for the improvement and the committee hopped the document produced will further improve performance which affect management, Teachers, parents, students, Nabia and other stakeholders. On the WASSCE results, Navrongo Senior High School presented 786 candidates for the 2023 WASSCE examination last year and out of that, 81 percent qualified to enter tertiary institutions and management is working hard to improve the results as the school is readies itself for the single track soon unpon the improvement of the infrastructure needs of the school.

She said the school won many academic awards last year and also represent the upper east region to the NSMQ competition and gotten to the one-eigth stage.

MS Mercy Babachuweh was also grateful that this year’s speech and prize giving day celebration is sponsored by the 1982 group for the sixth consecutive time and also unertooked a lot of projects for the school. In co-curricular activities, the school boys and girls were 1st in volleyball, net ball ,hand ball and football in a zonal inter schools games competition last year and in preparation for this year’s competition, Sheikh Otito Achuliwor has presented the school with 2 sets of jersey (boys and girls) , football, volleyball, handball, basketball netball as well as football stockings and a Nabia philanthropist who wishes to remain anonymous also donated asorted sports equipment worth GHC 35,480.00.

According to the Headmistress, government has re-awarded the continuation of the work of the girls’ domitory to a new contractor call MATSIP GHANA through the hard work of the upper east regional minister, honourable Stephen Yakubu who is an old Nabia and the contractor promised to deliver early next year . Even though the Navrongo Senior High School is doing very well in all aspects of education it’s has gotten it’s fair share of the challenges that bedeviled Ghana educational sector and one of such is fence well. NAVASCO school is a thoroughfare and that’s gives an opportunity to animals to also attend school anytime of the day not to study but to graze and litter and students also goes out and come in at will .

Therefore management is appealing for a fence wall . Most of the school vehicles and the 66 seater bus are overaged and a drain in the school on the school coffers in terms of maintenance.

According to the Headmistress the school also have insufficient furniture to accommodate the high numbers of the students. In terms of staff accomodation, she said the staff bungalows were built in the 60s and 70s and roofed with asbestos and have not seen any renovation since and therefore posed as danger to staff and added that the guidance and counseling centre also need to be furnished and a lot of projects started are stalled and she therefore call for support to facilitate good teaching and learning in the school.

The Headmistress, Ms Mercy Babachuweh took the opportunity to thanked all the year groups of Navrongo Senior High School, the individuals, government, CSOs and all stakeholders for their support and asked for more. Awards were given to many deserving staff and students of which many were sponsored by Nabia year groups and individual Nabias who are well to do in society.

Source : gbcuraonline.com