The Deputy Minister for Trade and Industry, also the Member of Parliament (MP)  for New Juaben South in the Eastern Region, Michael Okyere Baafi has launched a GH¢200,000.00 special education program to help final year students excel in the upcoming 2022 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).

The New Juaben South Municipality (Koforidua) has, over the years, suffered from dwindling performance in BECE, with the Municipality seeing lesser good grades from candidates who sit for BECE each year. This issue was a central issue for the Municipal Education Directorate. Thus, upon assumption of office as MP, Hon. Okyere Baafi, known to be a huge advocate of education, decided to embark on several initiatives in collaboration with the Municipal Education Directorate to change the narrative about the performance of BECE candidates in the New Juaben South enclave.

The initial step was to research and evaluate what accounted for the abysmal performances of BECE candidates in the constituency. The result of the research showed that most of the candidates were not well prepared for the examination. After several consultations with various stakeholders of education in the Municipality, the MP of New Juaben South instituted a yearly mentoring program dubbed “The MP’s Special Extra Classes” to adequately prepare the final year pupils to excel in their BECE. Last year was the maiden edition, which saw a tremendous improvement in the BECE results for 2021.

Last year the program had about 400-500 direct beneficiaries, and this year, over 450 BECE candidates within the constituency were selected to undergo the classes.

The yearly program begins with a launch and mentorship session from some scholars from Koforidua who are now prominent personalities in society to share their experiences with the students.

Subsequently, the selected BECE candidates are given about six (6) weeks of tuition on techniques for answering questions as they prepare to write their exams in October. The candidates act as Peer Educators/Instructors who are given time slots at their various schools to impart the knowledge and skills they have acquired at the MP’s Special Extra Classes to their colleagues in their respective schools. The program also comes with feeding the candidates from the preparation stage to the end of the exams. This year the program is estimated to cost the office of the MP about  GH¢200,000.00.

Some beneficiary BECE candidates have assured the MP of their utmost performance in the exams to ensure the legislator’s efforts are not fruitless. Also, some heads of the beneficiary schools expressed gratitude for the initiative and called for its expansion to include more students.

The MP had this to say after the launch of the program:

“I’m so passionate to see the final-year pupils in my constituency excel not only in their Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) but at all levels of their education to become responsible adults for the New Juaben South and Ghana as a whole.

To achieve this, I instituted a yearly mentoring session dubbed “The MP’s Special Extra Classes” to adequately prepare the final year pupils to excel in their academics. Last year’s maiden edition saw a tremendous improvement in the BECE results for 2021. This year, we want to achieve the same.

Last weekend, I paraded some personalities who excelled in their academic results and are currently making great strides in their fields of profession to talk to the 2022 BECE candidates in my constituency.

We had Squadron Leader Christiana Amponsah, a female Helicopter Pilot with her colleague, Flt Lt Felicia Akosua Asante and other astute lawyers and Engineers being present to mentor and challenge the final year pupils to urge them to become like them.

As MP for New Juaben South, I hope to see a better improved academic record once again in the 2022 BECE.

God bless NJSC. The future is bright. NJSC will become better than we met it.”

Below are some of the pictures from the launch and mentorship session :