President John Atta Mills has directed the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service to ensure that salaries and emoluments of teachers, especially newly engaged ones and those in deprived and remote areas, are promptly paid.

He noted that one of the major demoralizing factors for teachers had been the delays and inequity in remuneration for work done in comparison with their colleagues in other sectors.

President Mills gave the directive in a speech read on his behalf by Vice President John Dramani Mahama at the 15th National Best Teacher Award Ceremony in Ho, the Volta Regional capital.

The celebration was held on the theme: “Build the Future, Invest in Teachers Now.”

There were prizes for teachers who had excelled in Primary, Junior High and Senior High Schools as well as Colleges of Education.

Also, teachers who have distinguished themselves in the teaching of Science, Mathematics, French, Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) and Special Education will also receive awards.

President Mills said the Government expected to achieve a future of highly skilled labour with an investment in teachers, explaining that Ghana could not be left behind especially at a time when knowledge had become the defining ingredient of progress in a globalise world.  The President said Government recognized the importance of its responsibility to provide quality education to the citizenry, and investing in teachers had more than ever before become paramount.

Government therefore would play its part in the positive transformation of the lives of the entire society into an enlightened one by investing in teachers now, the President said.

“It is my hope that the single spine salary structure we hope to commence next year would resolve this challenge and spur teachers on to give of their best to society.”

President Mills urged all teachers to give of their best since the Best Teacher Award lenses could capture them at the Regional and District levels as well.

“I want to use this opportunity to appeal to all district chief executives and their directors of education to take the district Best Teachers Awards seriously and organise the award ceremonies annually to motivate the teachers in their districts.

source: pf

Tags: Education, ghana news, mills, payments, teacher salaries