The Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) has appealed to the Ghana Education Service (GES) to provide life jackets for students and teachers who sail to and from schools on island and settler communities.
The appeal comes after eight school children drowned in the Volta Lake on Monday, January 23, 2022 after a canoe on which they were travelling to school capsized at Wayokope, a fishing community.
“In the immediate term, we urge the Ghana Education Service (GES) to facilitate the availability of life jackets to all school children and staff who sail to and from school, not only in the Sene East District, but all other island and settler communities where children and staff commute by water transport to school.
“ The GES should in collaboration with the relevant state agencies, facilitate health and safety orientation sessions for all its pupils and staff in island communities,” a press release from Eduwatch copied to the Ghana News Agency, said.
It also urged the Minister of Education to work closely with the Sene East District Assembly and other local authorities in districts with island communities to strengthen the enforcement of health and safety standards at all water transport routes across the country.
The Eduwatch also called on the Education Ministry to provide teachers in island and settler communities with decent accommodation and financial incentives, adding that, that would prevent pupils and teachers from sailing through endangered means to school daily.
Eight school children drowned in the Volta Lake on Monday after a canoe on which they were travelling to school capsized at Wayokope , a fishing community in the Sene East District of the Bono East Region.
The children, numbering 20, were crossing the Lake from Atigagome, also a fishing community in the Sene East District, when the disaster occurred around 0700 hours.
