The Ghana Education Service (GES) in collaboration with the Adentan Municipal Assembly has donated 300 Dual Desks to schools in Adentan. The desks were handed over to the Adentan Education Directorate by the Municipal Chief Executive of Adentan, Honourable Alexander Nii-Noi Adumuah, on behalf of the GES in a short ceremony at the Assembly’s premises on Wednesday, May 10th, 2023.
While the donation is a welcome development, the quality of the desks has been a cause for concern for the Adentan Municipal Chief Executive. In an interview, he raised concerns about the quality and safety of the desks for school children. “The big but is the quality of the product that has come, and as I’m saying quality is about the materials or products put together being fit for a purpose. If you look at the wood, some of it is wrapped, if you look at the metals some of it is being rushed, if you look at the joints where they have used the bolts and nuts there is a lot that is still hanging that could easily become a danger to anybody walking behind any of these products, and that is where my concern is”, he said.
Furthermore, the Deputy Director from the Adentan Education Office, Madam Dinah Osam-Tewiah, has clarified that the desks will benefit 36 schools in the Municipality, excluding the KG schools due to the nature of the desks. “We really love having furniture because we really need them since enrollment keeps increasing. We have 36 schools. We will take the KG schools out and give them to the Upper primary and J.H.S because of the nature of it. The last time, the ones that were had posed so many problems. We had casualties and had to send the children to the hospital, and that was why with these metal ones, we decided to give to the Upper primary and J.H.S”, she said.
The donation of the desks will go a long way in addressing the shortage of furniture in schools in the Adentan Municipality. However, the concerns raised about the quality of the desks should be taken seriously by the authorities involved to ensure the safety of the school children. The Adentan Municipal Chief Executive has called for more of such donations, noting that the Assembly cannot do it all due to insufficient funds.
SOURCE: ISD, ADENTAN