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President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated that the double track calendar system to be implemented this September as part of the free senior high school (SHS) programme will not be applied to all schools but only those whose current capacity will be exceeded by the number of students admitted.

He said the double track system would not destroy the educational system but, on the contrary, reduce class sizes, increase contact hours between teachers and students and increase the number of school holidays.

  The President made the assertion when he addressed the climax of the 2018 Asafotufiami Festival of the chiefs and the people of Ada in the Greater Accra Region last Saturday.

“In spite of the existing infrastructure deficit, we will make sure that no qualified Ghanaian child is left behind,” he said.

Festival

There was the firing of muskets, while over 30 all-female bands marched in military-like formations. The bands played Gospel music and sang war songs and the National Anthem.

The members of some of the groups were octogenarians and children as young as six years who put up masterful performances and received applause from the President.

Various Asafo groups took turns to swear oaths of allegiance to the Paramount Chief and President of the Ada Traditional Council, Djetse Abram Kabu Akuaku III.

The festival was celebrated on the theme: “Mobilising local resources towards development and growth of the traditional area”.

It was the first festival the President had attended in the Greater Accra Region since he assumed office 18 months ago.

President

President Akufo-Addo said every new initiative had teething challenges but he was inspired by the famous Chinese adage: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step”, saying “once the first step has been taken, we shall deal with the challenges”.

He explained that the launch of the free SHS programme in September 2017 provided an additional 90,000 children with the opportunity of secondary education and that 180,000 more would be admitted to SHSs this year.

He said the double intake system was being adopted to ensure that all those who qualified were admitted, adding that 8,000 more teachers would be recruited to augment the current teacher population.

Elections

The President noted that traditionally the NPP did not fare well in polls in the Ada area but said he was hopeful things would change, judging from the warm reception he had received.

He said the government of the NPP was determined to work assiduously to bring development to the Ada area.