Kumasi, Jan. 22, GNA – The Leadership and Literacy (LLiT) Programme, an initiative of the US-Ghana Alumni Association, has been launched at Aboabo Kesse in the Ashanti Region to help develop the leadership qualities of the youth.
Sponsored by the US State Department, the LLiT is also aimed at exposing the youth to the concept and essence of reading to improve their knowledge base for accelerated growth.
“Education is a game changer,” Dr Hilda Mantebea Boye, President of the Association, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview on the sidelines of the event.
She said injecting the needed resources to uplift literacy programmes could not be glossed over, especially as the nation sought to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) on Education by 2030.
The Goal seeks to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Dr. Boye, also a Paediatrician at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, said the formative years of children were critical to their general development – the reason for targeting basic school children at the launch of the LLiT Programme.
About 100 basic school children from selected schools in the Atwima-Kwanwoma District were invited for the event and taken through the Principles of Leadership, Career Guidance and Concept of Reading.
“We believe every child has his or her own unique potential, which must be harnessed for the benefit of the society,” Dr Boye said.
She said the LLiT Programme was being rolled out to cover the entire country, saying members of the Association were committed to bringing to bear their skills and expertise to ensure the success of the initiative.
The US-Ghana Alumni Association is a body comprising the alumni of various US-sponsored exchange programmes and dedicated to contributing to changing the Ghanaian society for the better.
Mr Prince Karikari, the Atwima-Kwanwoma District Chief Executive, said the Government appreciated the efforts of the Association in charting the course for sustainable development, particularly in education and leadership.
Madam Doris Ofori, the District Director of Education, said civil society organisations had a role to play in realising the objectives of literacy programmes in the country.
“Education is a shared responsibility,” she noted, adding that there could be no meaningful progress in a society dominated by illiterates and ignorance.
Ms Ama Duncan, a member of the Association, who hosted the programme via her Fab Hub Ashanti, a business incubation hub for women in business in Kumasi, advised her colleagues to be actively involved in achieving the mission of the Programme.
A cross-section of some Ghanaian professionals were invited to mentor the children, including medical doctors and personnel from the Military, banking sector, and nursing profession.
GNA