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The New Patriotic Party has taken note of the “biggest ever global school rankings” conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and released today, which puts Singapore at the very top of the education league table, with Ghana, tellingly, in last spot out of 76 countries surveyed. It is a very sad reflection of the state of education in our country.

This comprehensive survey has gone to reaffirm the point consistently made by the NPP, that there is an intrinsic link between investment in education and the correspondent growth in the economy. As the report stresses, “poor education policies and practices leave many countries in what amounts to a permanent state of economic recession."

Ghana coming in last on this global last is not by accident because investment in education has slumped under President John Mahama and standards are feared to even fall further this year, with Government refusing to release funds for schools and Dumsor affecting studies.

The NPP is, nevertheless, encouraged by the same findings which state that Ghana would be at the top of this league table, in terms of economic growth potential, “if all 15 year olds achieved basic level of education.”

According to the findings, “If Ghana, the lowest ranked country, achieved basic skills for all its 15-year-olds, the report says that it would expand its current GDP by 38 times, over the lifetime of today's youngsters.”

This vindicates the message that our Presidential Candidate, Nana Akufo-Addo, has been consistently preaching since 2008 that “no Ghanaian should be denied education to the secondary level” and that education must be free from kindergarten to Senior High School.

The NPP remains consistent in its belief that education and skills training are the most critical tools for empowering and providing opportunities to the youth to help drive Ghana’s development and, in the process, create good jobs with good pay. The countries that have done well, even without natural resources (for example, Singapore) are the countries that have invested in education and skills training.

Nana Akufo-Addo is clear in his conviction that basic education has to be set at secondary level and made accessible and compulsory for all. This would ensure that a 15-year-old Ghanaian, who ordinarily would be in the first year of Senior High School, gets access to free quality Senior High School education. Contrary to the propaganda education will produce the kind of human capital necessary for our development.