Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, Minister of Education and Chairperson of the Ghana National Commission for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has been elected to serve on the UNESCO Executive Board for four years.
This was announced at the just ended special plenary session of the 38th General Conference of the organization at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France.
The UNESCO Executive Board ensures the overall management of the Organization’s programmes globally.
A statement from the Education Ministry said the organization also prepares the work of the General Conference and sees to the effective implementation of its decisions.
The functions and responsibilities of the Executive Board are derived from the UNESCO Constitution as well as the rules of procedure of the General Conference.
Ghana has also been appointed as the Rapporteur General of the Communication and Information Commission (CI) of the General Conference. The Commission is currently discussing UNESCO’s strategy in harnessing ICTs in education to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The election of Prof. Opoku-Agyemang has come at a time when UNESCO and the international community’s commendation of Ghana’s progress and achievements in the Education for All (EFA) goals, the statement said.
Addressing the Heads of delegations and UNESCO Ambassadors from 196 Member States during the policy debate segment, Prof Opoku-Agyemang commended UNESCO for leading the world to make huge improvement in education under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
She said even if a lot of work remains to be done, the international community was taking on the SDGs with a lot of hope and trust in the ability of UNESCO to continue to make a difference by working towards global peace through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information.
According to her, Ghana’s post 2015 agenda on education was right at the centre of SDG 4 and hinges on four main policy thrusts in line with the Agenda for Education 2030 (SDG.4), as well as the broader Africa Union vision 2063 (The Africa We Want) which seeks to harness the vast resources of the continent for the effective transformation of Africa.
She said Ghana’s post 2015 education agenda seeks to improve equitable access to and participation in quality education at all levels (SDG.4); improve the quality of teaching and learning at all levels (SDG 4.7) and improve the management of education service delivery with focus on efficiency.
The Minister, who led Ghana’s delegation to the 38th General Conference, was accompanied by Mrs. Johannes Odonkor Svanikier, and Ghana’s Ambassador to France and Permanent Delegate to UNESCO, Prof. Yaw Ankomah, Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (IEPA) of the University of Cape Coast and Riche-Mike Wellinton, Secretary-General of the Ghana National Commission for UNESCO.
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