Pencils of Promise inaugurates Eastern regional office

Pencils of Promise, also known as PoP, a non-profit organization with the focus on the establishment of educational facilities and increasing educational opportunities in developing countries, has inaugurated its Eastern regional office located at Kodjonya in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality.

The fully equipped office facility was commissioned by the Municipal Chief Executive of Lower Manya Krobo, Simon Kweku Tetteh on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 together with a host of officials from the education directorate of Yilo Krobo and Lower Manya Krobo.

Attesting to the success stories chalked by countries that prioritized education, Mr. Simon Tetteh noted education as not only the bedrock of development of a country but an important gateway.

“Countries that are developed today placed education top of their priority list and channeled huge sums of resources into it. Indeed in middle income countries, education and development are complementary,” said the assembly chief who added that this was the reason education will continue to remain a priority of government and the municipal assembly. “It is in line with this truism that education will continue to engage the attention of the municipal assembly.”

The MCE reiterated government’s resolve to ensure that children are enrolled in school through various interventions such as free Senior High School education, increasing the capitation grant, expanding the school feeding programme, etc. all geared towards building the kind of skilled human resources needed to speed up the country’s socio-economic development.

He however assured Pencils of Promise of the assembly’s continued support for their activities in the district.

Country director of Pencils of Promise Ghana, Mr. Freeman Gobah explained that the choice of Lower Manya for its eastern regional office was largely due to its proximity to the organization’s project districts in the region including Lower Manya Krobo, Yilo Krobo and Asuogyaman districts with the inclusion of Upper Manya Krobo in the coming days.

Mr. Gobah attributed the establishment of the facility to the support the NGO had received from the municipal assembly and the people of Lower Manya Krobo and said the NGO was committed to engaging in more developmental projects in the district.

The organization which has been operating in the country for the past seven years, he added has already executed 164 infrastructural projects in three regions including the Eastern, Volta and Oti Regions, with seven of such projects located in Lower Manya Krobo.

Mr. Gobah disclosed that his office was in collaboration with the Volta River Resettlement Fund to expand its operations to the Upper Manya Krobo district with the establishment of two projects as the first of its projects to be established over the years.

He expressed his heartfelt appreciation to Mr. and Mrs. Shardey, property owners of the facility for giving out the building for their official use.

Aside the establishment of classroom blocks, Pencils of Promise also holds Teachers’ Support Programmes where teachers are trained in interactive methods of teaching, water and sanitation education where pupils are taught basic hygiene skills, the provision of electronic readers, provision of books and handwashing stations for selected schools.

Planning Officer at the Lower Manya Education Directorate, Mr. Victor Badu who represented the Municipal Education Director, Mr. William Kwaku Odoi, commended Pencils of Promise for the gesture but appealed for more educational facilities in the district.

He also appealed to the NGO to, as a matter of urgency, bring back schools in the district which were taken off various programmes of the organization.

Staff from the Ghana Education Service from Yilo Krobo and Manya Krobo and staff of Pencils of Promise were present at the event.