“EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION IS FOR THE RICH PARENTS IN URBAN

CENTERS’’ A BASELINE STUDY IN THREE VILLAGES OF THE AWUTU

SENYA DISTRICT.

A STUDY COMMISSIONED BY DEVELOPMENT ALLIANCE FOR LITERACY

EDUCATION AND TRAINING (DALET).

PREPARED BY MS. GERTRUDE AGYEI, BA.IN DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION

STUDIES.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 1

 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

INTRODUCTION
In 2014, BBC reported a UN call for change as 57 million children have no school.
Millions of children in poorer countries cannot read or do basic additions because there
are no schools for the children to go and in some areas it could take 70 years before there
are enough primary school places for every child (UNESCO, 2011).
The number of children who are out-of-school have increased from 57 million to 61
million in the year 2017. Six countries are home for more than one-third of all out-of-
school children of primary age: Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan and Indonesia.
Sub-Saharan Africa share an unenviable top position for more than 50% of all out-of-
school children and have the highest out-of-school rate.
What can individuals and corporate bodies and the government do in Ghana to reduce the
UNESCO’s figure of 1.357 million children who were out-of-school, since the year 2006?
UNESCO’s Institute for Statistics new figures also show that more than 20% of African
children have never have access to early childhood education or have left school without
completing basic education.
Of the 61 million children of primary school age currently out of school, 17 million will
never set foot in a classroom if current trends continue according to the report.

Concerned about the deteriorating literacy situation in Ghana, especially, the poorer
regions—including the Volta and Central Region and consequences on national security,
socio-economic and human resource development, Development Alliance for Literacy
Education and Training (DALET), a non-profit making non-governmental organization
(NGO) supported Ms. Gertrude Agyei, Matthias Asare and other volunteers to conduct a
household survey to determine the number of children who are out of school in the most-
in-need villages of the Awutu Senya District Assembly with a view of supporting efforts
of the local government and other key stakeholders to efficiently and effectively control
and manage the problem .

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 2

Objectives of the survey
The objectives of the study were to:
1 Identify the total number of children who are out-of-school in the Djan,Kwao-Bonzie
and Larbie community and what they do with their parents and guardians.
2 Identify their age and sexes
3 Identify basic needs for children who are out-of-school and find out about the support
their parents and guardians need to be self-reliant and responsible to the children needs
4 Examine the need to increase relief services and recommend other interventions that can
influence significant reduction in school dropout, ensure increase in enrollment and
support entrepreneurship programs for parents and guardians to be self-reliant and reduce
poverty.

Hypotheses tested
The study sought to test four main hypotheses, namely:
1. There are no significant difference in number of out-of-school children use as labor
in farms and market places the Djan, Kwao-Bondzi and Larbie villages
2. There are no significant difference in number of school going age groups in the
three villages.
3. There is no significant donor and development partner aid to support orphan, poor
and needy children education in the three rural areas.

Justification for the study

While there is a steady growth of literature on basic education in the country, it is also the
case that majority of it is either in the form of official report from Ghana Education
Service ,District Analytical Report from Ghana Statistical Service data,
Population &Housing Census and a few applied research publication that focus more on
urban population than village settlements.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 3

Studies that would capture and provide data on these neglected villages within the District
Assembly to complement existing ones and, especially those that have the potential to
influence planning and policy of socio-economic development need to be encouraged.
More importantly is the fact that this study focus on children—foundations of human
capital; but, vulnerable to countless threats—including child marriage, child labor,
Child poverty, violence from broken home, and lack of nutrition, health care, learning,
skills, and job competencies as well as key stakeholders in the community in terms
contribution to the problem and how the phenomenon will be addressed.

Data and methods

The population targeted for the data comprised mainly parents, guardians responsible for
orphans and needy children’s education, teachers, sub chiefs and community elders and
persons considered as opinion leaders in the villages. Data were analyzed using
descriptive and quantitative methods.

A combination of qualitative and quantitative sampling procedures were considered,

however, the villages were surveyed one after the other entirely because there were less
than 100 household in Djan village alone, and less than 100 house in Larbie village and
the same applied to Kwao-Bonzie village. Djan village has the least household of 32 units.
In all, the study targeted 100 respondents excluding another 12 informants.
The main instrument used for the data collection were a questionnaire, focus group
discussion (FGD), personal observation and an in-depth interview (IDI).

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 4

Findings
The following are the main findings that emerged from the study:
1. The Larbie- Djan -Kwao Bondzie community are typically rural area. There is one
government basic school that serve Kwao Bondzie village. There were no preschool center
in the school as at 2015. Children from Djan could not access the school due to the long
distance (2.5km) they have to cover by foot and a stream they have to cross without a
beam bridge. It was too risky and difficult for them to attend the Kwao-Bonzie basic
school.

2. Our discussion with the parents, teachers and guardians, it was very evident that they
had interest in having their wards educated but they complained about lack of school
supplies, basic income to pay for school canteen and/or food for their children and also
their inability to support their wards in the various schools at Jei-Krodua and Papaase
No.1 small towns which are about 3.5km-4km from each other. Some parents who could
not afford the cost of transportation and bear such ordeals had sought admission in the
DALET Basic School at Larbie village, and others are waiting for vacancies in the same
school because the School is under resourced and overcrowded to admit more students.

3. Larbie, Djan and Kwao Bondzie communities are agrarian communities. The natives
are mainly into peasant farming. They grow crops like maize, pepper, pineapple and
cassava on smaller scales for family consumption and in some cases sell the excesses
when produce abound. This creates only seasonal jobs for them during bumper harvests.

4. Concerns were raised by some parents about their wards being too young to be by
themselves in schools which lack hygienic places of convenience and infirmaries. They
unequivocally stated that they preferred to have their wards at home to hygienically clean
them up than to enroll preschool children in distant early childhood centers that charge
exorbitant fees; but, lack caregivers and infirmaries.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 5

5. Observations and interviews revealed that a higher number of children are used for
hunting, children are used in nearby mango & pineapple farms and petty trading in Kasoa
New Market. As a result of poverty, most parents engage their children during school
hours in selling especially on market days and cultivation of crops on their parents’ farms.
This hinders the children from joining their classmates who have the privilege of being in
school.

6. Concerns about security and safety were raised by parents as regards the distances
children would have to walk to small towns with basic schools. They complained that
there are no pedestrian walk ways and zebra crossings from Djan village stretch of the
road to Jei-Krodua. In addition, kindergarten children cannot walk 2-3Km along such a
busy road to school.
Recommendation
Based on the findings, the following recommendation are made for possible consideration:
1. There is a need to resource the basic school at Larbie to provide quality teaching-
learning outcome for the children who live at Larbie and Djan villages and its environs
since majority of those children who cannot access any basic school live within these
villages.
2 School supplies, school feeding, safe foot path and/or pedestrian cross way are basic
needs for the children. There is a need for providing them with exercise books, pens,
pencils, food, free school uniforms, school bus and/or safe road.
3. Teachers and teaching-learning resources are basic necessity to the basic school at
Larbie. There is a need to support the school’s teaching staff with fair wage and salary and
other motivation.
4. Bi-annual community awareness programs must be organized beside Parent Teacher
Association (PTA) meetings to sensitize the villages on the importance of child education.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 6

5 Child labor is a major cause of absenteeism and school dropout. There is a need to
engage civil society organizations and the government to educate and punish those who
will fail to comply with the laws.

6 Some parents and guardians are small farm holders and petty traders; others requested
entrepreneurship and trade skill training and support in the areas of modernized
agriculture and micro-credit for them to be responsible to wards.

7 Social amenities and programs such as School Feeding, clinic, library and Livelihood
Empowerment against Poverty (LEAP) program have no coverage in any of the three
villages. There is a need for provision services to ensure rural community development.

8. There is low savings and low levels of financial literacy. There is a need for a financial
institution to establish its presence and operation to cover businesses in Paapase and its
environs to enable the village folks patronize, learn, and grow their businesses.

9. 1 in 4 children goes to bed hungry in Ghana (UNICEF Ghana, 2015). Poverty and
hunger grow more acute in poorest and most vulnerable population. There is a need to
provide free nutritious meals for pupils (orphans and needy children).

10. The DALET( a Non -Governmental Organization) basic school is poorly equipped and
overcrowded. There is a need to build six classroom block and a library for the school.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 7

INTRODUCTION
Background to the study
Quality of education delivery remains Ghana`s hope of reducing its high level of illiteracy
and poverty. Ghana has made considerable progress towards increasing access to
education and narrowing gender gaps. In 2005, the Ministry of Education abolished tuition
fees nationwide in public schools and introduced the capitation grant for all basic schools
(UNGEI, Ghana-background,http://www.ugei.org/infobycountry/Ghana.html).

Ghana is a very young nation compared to the US and other developed countries:
demographically speaking, nearly 40 % of the country’s population is under the age of 14.
However, the socio-economic hardship that many children face in Ghana is
overwhelming.
Improving education has been part of the effort to reduce poverty and promote socio-
economic growth. The poverty reduction processes show that Ghana has made remarkable
steps towards the reduction of poverty according to Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) by reducing the proportion of population living below the poverty line from
51.7% in 1991/92 to 28.5% in 2005/06, while the population living in extreme poverty
decreased by half, from 36.5% in 1991/92 to about 18% in 2005/06 (UNICEF, 2012, p.18).
Nonetheless, close to 28 % of Ghanaians are still living in extreme poverty and rural
Ghana where high levels of extreme poverty are omnipresent, nearly 60 % of the children
suffer child labor and no access to safe drinking water sources. School supplies,
classrooms and teachers are scares.
There are more than 160,000 Ghanaian children who have been orphaned due to
HIV/AIDS and are facing the harsh realities of life without biological parents.
UNESCO show a figure of 1.357 million children who were out-of-school, since the year
2006. 7 in 10 street children are illiterate. Some of these children have run away from their

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 8

villages to the cities due to the hardship of orphan, domestic violence and child labor.
UNESCO’s Institute for Statistics new figures also show that more than 20% of African
children have never have access to early childhood education or have left school without
completing basic education.Of the 61 million children of primary school age currently out
of school, 17 million will never set foot in a classroom if current trends continue according
to the report.
Contextual Issues
Ghana is made up of 10 administrative regions and 216 decentralized metropolitan,
municipal and district assemblies (MMDA). It has a population of about 29 million over
a land area of 230,000km2. About a third of the country is fairly well-watered and
forested. The soils are also quite rich, providing a suitable environment for perennial tree
crops such as cocoa, oil palm, rubber, coffee, cashew, kola, banana and citrus in the
forested belt and cereals and legumes in the northern part where there are no heavy
rainfall.
There are also vast mineral-rich bearing rocks of Birrimian and Tarkwaian types where
precious metals such as gold, diamond, bauxite, manganese and recently crude oil is
exploited. With these natural resources, the country is potentially rich by tropical African
standards. In fact, Ghana began its post-colonial period as a prosperous nation with a
relatively sound economy. Its education, transport, healthy population and health
infrastructure were reasonably stable. In the 1960’s, for instance, the country was
generally better off in comparison with most of its West African neighbors such as
Nigeria and La Cote d’Ivoire. Coup d’état and several military interventions made the
good economic condition short lived.Since the country returned to rule of law and from
the late 1980s, the economy had begun to pick up. Today, “Ghana’s economy has grown
from 3.6 % in 2016, the lowest in 22 years, to 7.9 % in 2017...” –H.E. Prez. Nana Addo
Dankwa Akkufo Addo. Ghana is far behind Malaysia, Singapore and other developed
countries that Ghana had begun the race with in terms of education infrastructure and
economic development.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 9

Figure 1. Ghana’s West African neighbors and the map of Ghana

Source: Premium Times, Abuja, 2018.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 10

The problem
Education is intrinsic to development. Education is said to be key to a nation’s
development. Education enables individuals to acquire knowledge and skills which
constitute the most important key to development and poverty reduction in the current
international dispensation where knowledge is the leading generator of wealth (UNESCO,
2002). The presence of human and natural resources in a nation is a necessary but not a
sufficient condition for development. Education provides the medium through which
quality human resource is produced to exploit the natural resource endowment for
economic growth and development in a nation.
Referring to the invaluable role of education in training human capital for national
development, Harbison (1968) argues that:

“A nation’s most treasured and dynamic assets are its human resources. A country’s
growth and sustenance of development depends on the development of its human
population through the provision of quality education. Putting adequate resources
into and paying attention to the provision of quality education normally results in
considerable strides in economic development and social transformation, and raises
the quality of life of peoples”.
Education also helps people to make informed choices or decisions regarding life-long
issues such as life styles, diet and family size which have direct implications for health,
fertility, life expectancy, productivity and per capita income growth levels of individuals
and nations at large (UNESCO/OECD, 2002).
Provision of universal primary education for both girls and boys on equal footing which
is the starting point for the realization of the invaluable contributions of education which
should be supported with further training at secondary and tertiary levels.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 11

However, in Ghana, 7 in 10 children on the streets are illiterate. Some of these children
have run away from their villages to the cities due to the hardship of life as an orphan,
domestic violence, child poverty and child labor. It is on record that nearly 1.4 million
children in Ghana do not go to school. About 160,000 of 1.4 million children parents were
killed by AIDS alone.

This report is written based on a household survey conducted with selected villages
namely: Larbie, Djan and Kwao Bondzie in the Awutu Senya District Assembly of the
Central Region of Ghana by volunteers and DALET team.
The main goal of this report is to highlight the needs, concerns, problems and challenges
affecting these communities in the area of early childhood education and the primary
education and how best these challenges can be addressed by development partners, the
local government, churches, corporate bodies and other interested organizations towards
the improvement of quality, accessible and affordable basic education within these
communities.
DALET is a non-profit and non-governmental organization founded by a group of like-
minded individuals with the compassion to raise orphans, needy children, and the
extremely vulnerable youth and shape their future through empowerment and education
especially those from less privileged communities or most in-need villages with high
incidence of poverty. DALET started in Ghana in April 2016 by the abled supervision of
Mr. Samuel Gyamfi Asiedu who is presently an Executive Director in Ghana.
DALET has a mission to educate, shape and develop the skills of poor children at the basic
level within rural communities through affordable and accessible quality education and
training.
DALET has a vision of creating equal educational opportunities for all children and also
cover all deprived communities by 2030.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 12

Objectives of the study
The objectives of the study were to:
1 Identify the total number of children who are out-of-school in the Djan,Kwao-Bonzie
and Larbie community and what they do with their parents and guardians.
2 Identify their age, status [(needy, orphan and vulnerable child, OVC)], and their gender.
3 Identify basic needs for children who are out-of-school and find out about the support
their parents and guardians need to be self-reliant and responsible to the children needs
4 Examine the need to increase relief services and recommend other interventions that can
influence significant reduction in school dropout, ensure increase in enrollment and
support entrepreneurship programs for parents and guardians to be self-reliant and reduce
poverty.

Hypotheses tested
The study sought to test four main hypotheses, namely:
4. There are no significant difference in number of out-of-school children use as labor
in farms and market places the Djan, Kwao-Bondzi and Larbie villages
5. There are no significant difference in number of school going age groups in the
three villages.
6. There is no significant donor and development partner aid to support orphan, poor
and needy children education in the three rural areas.

Justification for the study

While there is a steady growth of literature on basic education in the country, it is also the
case that majority of it is either in the form of official report from Ghana Education
Service ,District Analytical Report from Ghana Statistical Service data,
Population &Housing Census and a few applied research publication that focus more on
urban population than village settlements.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 13

Studies that would capture and provide data on these neglected villages within the District
Assembly to complement existing ones and, especially those that have the potential to
influence planning and policy of socio-economic development need to be encouraged.
More importantly is the fact that this study focus on children—foundations of human
capital; but, vulnerable to countless threats—including child marriage, child labor,
Child poverty, violence from broken home, and lack of nutrition, health care, learning,
skills, and job competencies as well as key stakeholders in the community in terms
contribution to the problem and how the phenomenon will be addressed.

One of the output of the household survey is to identify and report ‘black spots’ in the
development of the communities, namely; Djan, Annomaobi, Kwao-Bonzie, Larbie , Jei-
Krodua and Papaase, because there is high levels of teenage pregnancy ,school dropout,
poverty, child labor, ‘okada’ motorbike riders and robbery attacks, orphans, and so on.
The 2010 House and Population Census reported about 3.1% of the district’s total
population has one form of disability or the other.

The proportion of the male population with disability is slightly lower (3.1%) than
females (3.2%).

The types of disability in the district include sight, hearing, speech, physical, intellect,
and emotion. Persons with sight disability recorded the highest of 34 percent followed
by physical disability (29.9%).

There are slightly higher people with disability in the urban areas (3.7%) than in the
rural areas (2.6%). Of the district population with disability 15 years and older, 59.3
percent are employed, 2.5 percent are unemployed while 38.5 percent are economically
not active. Of the population disabled, 47.2 percent have never been to school.

It has been 8 years ago and there was a need to observe occurrence of physical, social
and economic changes in the lives of the village folks and use the findings for
empowerment and interventional purpose.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 14

Sources of data and methods
Data were obtained from primary and secondary sources. The former comprised survey
respondents in each village and household while the latter varied including official District
Assembly House and Population Census reports, discussion with the District Social
Welfare director and social development programs within urban centers in the District.
The population targeted for the data comprised mainly parents, guardians responsible for
orphans and needy children’s education, teachers, sub chiefs and community elders and
persons considered as opinion leaders in the villages. Data were analyzed using
descriptive and quantitative methods.

A combination of qualitative and quantitative sampling procedures were considered,

however, the villages were surveyed one after the other entirely because there were less
than 100 household in Djan village alone, and less than 100 house in Larbie village and
the same applied to Kwao-Bonzie village. Djan village has the least household of 32 units.
In all, the study targeted 100 respondents excluding another 12 informants.
The main instrument used for the data collection were a questionnaire, focus group
discussion (FGD), personal observation and an in-depth interview (IDI).

The survey questionnaire was pre-tested once in the course of its design. The first pre-test
was carried out in Feb 2018 to find out the suitability of the questions and the instructions
provided. It also tested the adequacy and completeness of the responses and how
respondents-aged 18 + understood the questions. Experience from the pre-test was used
to improve the final survey questionnaire. The lower limit of age 18 was chosen because
it is both the voting age and the age at which one can legally acquire a driving license and
get married. The study is about education and rural community development and it is
important to understand that poverty alleviation, is a set of measures, both economic and
humanitarian, that are intended to permanently lift people out of basic needs—including
nutrition, basic education, health care facility, basic income, and shelter and so on.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 15

Field work challenges
The research team encountered a few challenges which need to be highlighted to inform
future household survey of this nature. Firstly, nearly all the parents and guardians in the
three villages are illiterates. So the team could not give them the opportunity to complete
the questionnaire by themselves. Few others were able to respond to questions in English
language.

Secondly, to arrive at a reasonable community sample size that could be subject to

statistical investigation, the research team needed to cover every household since two
villages were smaller and close to each other. Households were less than 100 in each of
two villages, namely, Djan and Larbie.

Thirdly, the research team had to walk on foot to some secluded households within each
village and the team had to meet both peasant farmers and market women on time in their
various homes.

Fourthly, questions had to be put in Twi or Bereku language for respondents to answer,
while other village folk interference with irrelevant questions during the collect and
recording of data on the questionnaire .

Profile of respondents and suggestion for future survey

In spite of the challenges, sufficient data were collected for the team to achieve the
objectives of the survey. Of the total of one hundred persons surveyed none of the forms
returned was considered unusable. However, the team suggest that additional research
should be done to find the total population of children and households in the three villages
and in the District since the questionnaire were limited to 100 household unit; not every
household were interviewed in the Kwao-Bondzie village.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 16

Table 1. Ghana Statistical Service 2010 Population and Housing Census

Some Government information about the District

The Administrative Capital of the Awutu-Senya District is Awutu Bereku. Until
Awutu Senya East Municipal was carved out in 2012, the District was described as
the Gateway to the Central Region from the Greater Accra Region. The District
Assembly was established by LI 1376 of 2007 and inaugurated on 29 February 2008.

Physical Features: Location and size

The Awutu-Senya District is located in the Central Region of Ghana. It covers a
surface area of 244.473sq.km. The Gomoa East District has dotted enclaves within
the district. The Southern part of the district is bounded by the Gulf of Guinea, to
the East by Awutu Senya Municipal, to the West by Gomoa East and Agona East
Districts, and the North-Eastern part by West Akim District.

Relief and drainage

The Awutu-Senya district is characterised by isolated undulating highlands. The
coastline of Senya has Lowlands with isolated hills. Two major rivers, Ayensu and
Okrudu in the district drain into the sea. There are also streams and small rivers that
traverse the lowland plains stretching from Winneba to the coastal plains of Senya.
Political and Administrative Structure
Awutu Senya District Assembly is made up of one Urban Council, namely Senya
and 5 Area Councils which are Bawjiase, Jei-Krodua, Awutu Bereku, Bontrase and
Obrachire. It has 25 elected and 11 appointed members and the District Chief
Executive bringing the total number to 37. It also has a Member of Parliament who
is an ex- officio member. Currently, eight decentralized departments have been
established out of the 11 at the District level.
The Assembly is empowered with legislative, deliberative and executive functions
within the district. There is a Presiding Member who is elected from the Assembly
Members and chairs all Assembly as well as Public Relations and Complaints
committee (PRCC) meetings.
The Assembly has five statutory sub- committees namely; Justice and Security,
Development Planning, Works, Social Services and Finance and Administration.
There is an Executive Committee which reviews the work of the sub-committees
before the General Assembly meeting. The Executive Committee, which is made
up of the chairpersons of the various sub-committees is chaired by the District
Chief Executive.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 17

 Cultural and Social Structure

The indigenous people of Awutu and Senya are of the Guan ethnic stock and
celebrate the Akomase and Awubia Festivals. These two constitute the largest
group in a region which is predominantly Akan in ethnicity. There are other settler
ethnic groups including Gas, Akans, Ewes, Walas/Dagartis, Moshis and Basares.
Indigenous Languages which are mainly spoken is Bereku (Awutu) while Akan
and English are dominant languages used at centers of vibrant commerce.
The vast majority of the population is Christian dominated by Pentecostals and
Charismatics. There are also significant proportions of followers of Islam and
Traditional African religions who in total make up 8.2 percent of the population of
the district. About 12.4 percent of the population do not belong to any religious
group and do not have any religious preferences.

Economy
The District is a hub for agriculture and its related activities. Agriculture employs
approximately 54 percent of households in the District. Agricultural activities
include crop farming, tree planting, livestock rearing and fish farming.
The availability of natural water bodies can be tapped for irrigation to boost food
crop production especially during the minor season. Bamboo is another natural
resource that can be tapped to generate jobs and increase income of households.
Other economic industrial activities within the District include mining and
quarrying, manufacturing, construction, transportation, financial and insurance.
Literacy and education
Almost half (48.3%) of the population 11 years and older in the district is literate in
English. The second highest proportion of the literate population is English and
Ghanaian language only (46.1%) followed by Ghanaian Language only (4.6%). In
spite of attempts being made towards encouraging literacy in French, only 0.5
percent of literate population 11 years and older are literate in English and French.
A total of 31,951 children are attending school made up of 16,402 males and 15,549
females; 27,787 have attended school in the past also with 14,436 males and 13,351
females.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 18

 Disability

About 3.1percent of the district’s total population has one form of disability or the
other. The proportion of the male population with disability is slightly lower
(3.1%) than females (3.2%). The types of disability in the district include sight,
hearing, speech, physical, intellect, and emotion.

Persons with sight disability recorded the highest of 34 percent followed by

physical disability (29.9%). There are slightly higher people with disability in the
urban areas (3.7%) than in the rural areas (2.6%). Of the district population with
disability 15 years and older, 59.3 percent are employed, 2.5 percent are
unemployed while 38.5 percent are economically not active. Of the population
disabled, 47.2 percent have never been to school.

Agriculture
A greater Proportion (53.8%) of households in the district are engaged in agriculture.
Rural households (71.5%) dominate agricultural activities. The highest proportion
of household engaged in agricultural activities is into crop farming (75.8%). Also,
23.6 percent are engaged in livestock rearing. Tree planting and fish farming are
undertaken by less than one percent of households in agriculture.

Occupation

Skilled agricultural forestry and fishery (43.5%) is the most common occupation
for persons aged 15years and older in the district. This is followed by Service and
Sales (19.8%) and Crafts and Related Trade Workers (19.5%). Managers (1.7%)
and professionals (4.0%) are least. There are however more female managers (2.0
percent) than males (1.7%).

Employment status and sector

Of the population 15 years and older 71.3 percent are self-employed without
employees, 16.5 percent are employees and contributing family workers (6.8%).The
private informal sector is the largest employer in the district, employing 91.7 percent
of the population followed by the private formal sector with 4.7 percent.

Source : Ghana Statistical Service ,2010, District Analytical Report

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 19

The Household Survey: ‘black spots villages’ in the studies.

The research team surveyed the Larbie, Djan and Kwao-Bondzie and identified that:

The Larbie, Djan and Kwao- Bondzie villages are about 1.5km apart from each other. The
three villages are all located off Papaase No.1 on the Kasoa – Bawjiase road in the Central
Region and are typical farming communities.

The indigenous people also engage in petty trading of crops like pepper, okra, pineapple,
cassava, yam, etc.

Majority of the rural folks are Christians while a small number are Muslims and
traditionalists who have their mosques and shrines established in the villages.

Larbie, Djan and Kwao Bondzie community are mainly dominated by the people of
Awutu Senya and Awutu Breku ethnic groups and the spoken languages among them are
Breku and Fante.

These villages combined together have a population of not less than 1000 people. They
lack good road, portable drinking water, sanitation and health facilities, and market places
among others.

The people do not have any stable source of income, therefore rely on peasant farming
and petty trading for sustenance. Illiteracy rates are very high within these community
because they lack formal education and skill training for economic empowerment.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 20

Figure 2. Awutu Senya District Map

Source: Ghana Statistical Service, GIS.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 21

Findings and figures
The report targets children not above age 11 in all three communities and categorizes them
in three different age range; namely, Age 1-3,Age 4-7 and Age 8-11.
Below are mathematical expressions of the data gathered by the household survey’s team:
Larbie village household survey
In the Larbie village, 46 children below age 10 were recorded.
Table 2. AGE 1-3: Children not enrolled in any Day Care or Pre-school data
Total of 7 (20%) children were recorded Observation
Three (3) were males Parents and guardians said they find it difficult to
Four (4) were females pay for expenses of their children attending a
tuition free school called DALET Basic School,
also, it is too early for children under this age
category to be in a Day Care Center.
Source: Household survey, 2018
Children within this age range are not enrolled in any school yet. Therefore much cannot
be said about them but provisions must be made to absorb them in schools when they are
ready for schooling. Reasons given by their parents are that they are too young for school
enrollment and lack of funds to cover their daycare maintenance in the nearest school.
Table 3. AGE 4-7: Kindergarten age group data
Total of 23( 34%) children pupils recorded Observation
Ten ( 10) were boys
Thirteen (13) were girls
Four (4) were out-of-school 1 boy, 3 girls were not attending any school
The DALET School Project head teacher said that pupils need exercise books, slates, school uniforms
and school canteen grant to enable them provide a free meal per child in the school. It cost $1.00USD
to provide clean water and a meal per a child in the school. Even though friends support to subsidies
school feeding budget, it is not enough. There is need to build six classroom unit block the pupils.
Source: Household survey, 2018.
From the above it could be observed that quite a number of children are enrolled at the
DALET Pre-School since it is located in the Larbie village and children would not go
through much stress to attend school on daily basis.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 22

Table 4. AGE 8-11: Primary school children age group data
Total of 16 pupils were recorded Observation
Nine (9) were girls
Seven (7) were boys
Eight (8) were out-of-school 5girls, 3 boys were not attending school
DALET Basic School near to provided assistance these out-of-school children, however, the School is
under resourced and it needs school furniture, exercise and textbooks, school uniforms and school
feeding grant to enable the non-profit School to provide assistance to these OV and needy children.
Source: Household survey, 2018

The recorded number of children who have never been to school is quite worrying but
measures must be put in place to help these children and also encourage them to enroll in
private or public basic school of their choice.

Djan village household survey

In the Djan village, 59 children below age 10 and of school going age were recorded.
Table 5. AGE 1-3: Children not enrolled in any Day Care or Pre-school data
Total of 11(31%) were recorded Observation
Five (5) were males Parents and guardians said they cannot pay for
Six (6) were females expenses of their children attending a tuition free
school at Larbie called the DALET Basic School,
therefore, it is too early for children under this age
category to be in a Day Care Center.
Source: Household survey, 2018
There is no early childhood education center or Kindergarten to enroll these children in
Djan village, some parents said their children are too young to be in pre-school and are
therefore not started school yet. Some also said that if DALET start to operate a daycare
they would like to enroll their three (2-3) years’ children.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 23

Table 6. Age 4-7: Kindergarten age group data
Total of 21(31%) pupils were recorded Observation
Twelve (12) were boys

Nine (9) were girls One (1) were out-of-school

Parents and guardians of eighteen (18) pupil complained that the need basic income to support their
children’s education. In addition, they need school supplies and school feeding support. The DALET
Basic School teachers confirmed that their pupils need exercise books, slates, school uniforms and
school canteen grant to enable them provide a free meal per child in the school. It cost $1.00USD to
provide clean water and a meal per a child in the school.
Source: Household survey, 2018

Children captured in this category were all not enrolled in any school yet until the advent
of the DALET Basic School. They are currently been nurtured and trained by the school
of which their performance has been better so far.

Table 7. AGE 8-11: Primary school children data

Total of 27 (42%) pupils recorded Observation
Fourteen (14) were boys
Thirteen (13) were girls
Eighteen children (18) were out-of-school
There is a need to enroll eighteen (18) children in the various school of their choice; they have
expressed interest in the DALET Basic School . A school uniform per a child(=18 uniforms),16 Note1
exercise books per a child(=288 exercise books), pens, crayons, school feeding grant, school
furniture and shoes are needed to enroll/or support re-entry into schools.
Source: Household survey, 2018

Under this category, it could be clearly observed that majority of the children have been
deprived of schooling due to reasons given as parents’ inability to bear the costs of
education. These children also help their parents in their farms and market places.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 24

Kwao-Bondzie village household survey
This village is 3km away from the Jei-Krodua town. Even though it quite far, it happens
that Larbie is the only closest village with one school which can enroll children in that
village whose parents and guardian are extremely poor and aged. During our data
collection exercise, one major request parents made were to establish a DALET Pre-
school for them or get a school bus which would convey their wards to the DALET pre-
school at Larbie since means of transportation is difficult. Here, 75 children of school
going age were captured in this village.
Table 8. Age 1-3: Children not enrolled in any Day Care or Pre-school data
Total of 17(49%) children Observation
Eight (8) were males Private daycare center is out-of- business .No one
Nine (9) were females have set up a profit making Day Care Center again
because parents and guardians work in non-formal
sector have complained of unemployment, low
income levels ,poverty and lack of capital.
Source: Household survey, 2018.
None of the children in this category is schooling due to the absence of a pre-school. Some
parents and caregivers said their children are too young to be in pre-school, others said
the children are orphans and are therefore not started school yet of lack income to support
their own children and that of the OV children.

Table 9. AGE 4-7: Kindergarten age group data

Total of 24 (35%) pupil were recorded Observation
Thirteen (13) were boys
Eleven ( 11) were girls
Seventeen ( 17) children were out-of-school
Parents and guardians of sixteen (16) children have shown interest in the DALET early childhood
education center at Larbie village. A total of 34 school uniforms are needed, packs of pencils and
crayons,17 slates , packs of chalks, bags of rice and beans to support school feeding ,pre-school
exercise books, mini-van/school bus ,toys ,etc are needed to support OV and needy children to
enroll in the DALET Pre-school.
Source: Household survey, 2018

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 25

For lack of schools within the community and the unfavorable distance children would
have to cover to Larbie for school, most of these kids engage in trading with their
parents, fishing and farming during school hours.

Table 10. AGE 8-11: Primary school children age group data
Total 21 (33%) pupils were recorded Observation
Ten (10) were boys
Eleven (11) were girls
Fifteen (15) children were out-of-school
There is a need to enroll fifteen children in various schools of their choice; nine (9) have shown interest
in the DALET Basic School at Larbie village. One school uniform per a child (=15 uniforms), 16 Note1
exercise books per a child (=240 Note.1 exercise books),pens, pencils , school feeding and school
furniture needed to be provided to support fresh enrollment and re-entry into schools.

Source: Household survey, 2018

From the tabulated data, there is the clear indication that a considerable efforts have been
done by DALET to get some children within the school going age to enroll at the basic
level but are more efforts must be done to make the DALET vision a reality.

Table 11. Summation of the number of OV children who need support

Age range Village: Village: Village: Total Per cent
Larbie Djan KwaoBonzie %
<3 7 (20%) 11 (31%) 17 (49%) 35 (100%) 21
4-7 23 (34%) 21 (31%) 24 (35%) 68 (100%) 41
8-11 16 (25%) 27 (42%) 21 (33%) 64 (100%) 38
Subtotal 46 (28%) 59 (35%) 62 (37%) 167(100%) 100
Per cent % 28 35 37 100 100
Source: Household survey, 2018

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 26

Graph 1. Percentages of children age < 3 for Larbie, Djan and Kwao-Bonzie villages

Kwao-Bonzie
49%
Djan
31%
Larbie
20%

The Larbie- Djan -Kwao Bondzie community are typically rural area. There is one
government basic school that serve Kwao Bondzie village. There were no preschool center
in the school as at 2015. Children from Djan could not access the school due to the long
distance (2.5km) they have to cover by foot and a stream they have to cross without a
beam bridge. It was too risky and difficult for about 60 children to attend the Kwao-Bonzie
basic school run by the government. Parents and guardians complained that they need
school supplies, school feeding for the pupils, and basic income and/or source of income
to support their family and pupils’ education.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 27

 Our discussion with the parents, teachers and guardians, it was very evident that they had
interest in having their wards educated but they complained about lack of school supplies,
basic income to pay for school canteen and/or food for their children.
Also their inability to support their wards in the various schools at Jei-Krodua and
Papaase No.1( small towns which are about 3.5km-4km from each other) are some of the
reasons which account for children out-of-school situation. Some parents who could not
afford the cost of transportation and bear such ordeals had sought admission in the DALET
Basic School at Larbie village, and other children are waiting for vacancies in the same
school; but the School is under resourced to admit more pupils.

The three (3) villages: Larbie, Djan and Kwao Bondzie are agrarian community. The
natives are mainly into peasant farming. They grow crops like maize, pepper, pineapple
and cassava on smaller scales for family consumption and in some cases sell the excesses
when produce abound. This creates only seasonal jobs for them during bumper harvests.
Incomes from their produce according to the survey is estimated to be GHS 150/month.

Concerns were raised by some parents about their wards being too young to be by
themselves in schools which lack hygienic places of convenience and infirmaries. They
unequivocally stated that they preferred to have their wards at home to hygienically clean
them up than to enroll preschool children in distant early childhood centers that charge
exorbitant fees; but, lack caregivers and infirmaries.

Observations and interviews revealed that a higher number of children are engaged in
hunting, children are also engaged in nearby mango & pineapple farms and petty trading
in Kasoa New Market. As a result of poverty, most parents engage their children during
school hours in selling, especially, during market days, and during cultivation of crops in
their parents’ farms. This hinders the children from joining their classmates who have the
privilege of being in school.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 28

 Concerns about security and safety were raised by parents as regards the distances
children would have to walk to small towns with basic schools. They complained that
there are no pedestrian walk ways and zebra crossings from Djan village stretch of the
road to Jei-Krodua. In addition, kindergarten children cannot walk 2-3Km along such a
busy road to school. In an examination of the reported road traffic accidents data in the
country, the MTTU Police Service report (2010) shows a quarterly figure of 12,565 road
traffic accidents for the year 2009(Abane,A.M, Akyea-Darkwa,G.,&Amenumey
E.K.,2010) Pedestrian road accident fatalities was 938 for the year.
Activities of the “Okada Motor” transport system have increased since 2009, about 99%
of all Okada Motor riders do not have licenses. They are not regulated in the Larbie-
Jeikrodua and Papaase area. It is not safe for children to walk 2-3km along such high risk
road to school Jei-krodua and Papaase No.1.

Discussions

The data from the three (3) neighboring villages have provided sufficient evidence to put
into proper perspective the number of children who need support for enrollment and
retention in schools. As it is evident in Table 11 that a total of one hundred and sixty-
seven (167) are poor children, some are orphan and vulnerable children (OVC).
These children are under the age of eleven 11.

An orphan or a vulnerable child is a child under the age of 18 whose mother, father, both
parents, or a primary caregiver has died, and who is in need of care or
protection.(Namibian Government definition, 2002). There are more than 160,000
Ghanaian children who have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS alone and they are facing
the harsh realities of life without biological parents or primary caregivers.Poverty,
unemployment and literacy are some of the factors to bad health habits and deviant
behavior—including prostitution and infidelity. Promiscuity is now the leading cause of
the spread of HIV in the developing regions. Many people are having more than one
sexual partner, and also prostitution is common in the regions (Hilary Heuler, VOA).

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 29

Promiscuity is being practiced by both young adults and married people. A big number
of people in relationships are practicing infidelity without caring about its consequences.
Surprising studies show that more than 60% of new infections are occurring in married
people (Choi K.H., Gibson D.R., Han L., Guo Y.).

The Third World countries have a large percentage of people who know very little about
HIV/AIDS. Most people know the disease exists, but they lack information about its
aspects (Kelly M. J., Bain, B.).

Generally, the illiterate people don’t know anything about the HIV transmission ways
and preventative measures, and they continue to engage in unsafe practices that spread
the virus. These people are also easily influenced by the beliefs, myths, and
misconceptions about the disease,( Januaris,S.F,2018).

In addition, the developing world has a large population of people living in poverty.
Most poor people are forced to do anything to earn a living, including engaging in
sexual activities which are a high-risk factor for the disease.

There have been many cases of young people getting involved in commercial sex in
these countries. This activity has been studied to tremendously increase the disease
prevalence. Poor people also have limited access to education which means that
illiteracy is common among them (Scott E., Simon T., Foucade A., Theodore K.,
Gittens-Baynes K.). Governments and development partners need to continue to
alleviate poverty or make poverty a history by 2030.

In order to reduce poverty in deprived and most-in-need rural areas like Djan,Larbi ,
Kwao-Bonzie, etc. ,there is a need to support OV and needy children to enroll and
complete at least Senior High School. The total number of children who are out-of-
school is 98. These children are between the ages of 1-11 and according to Table 11, 35
of these children are aged between1-3 represent 21 per cent of 167 children who need
support.

Even though Kwao-Bondzie is the only village which has a government basic school to
enroll children of school age, they have the highest number of children between the ages
of 1-3 representing 49% in respect to all the three villages.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 30

In a scheduled interview with a young lady, time: 5:50pm GMT, whose four (4) children
(ages 4-7 and 8-11) were not attending any school said:

” We do not have money to support the children in school, I know that there is a
school here in Kwao-Bonzie, even though we’ve come here not more than 1 year. But
my husband is a helper to his friend who is a mason, he is unemployed since he lost
his previous job, he was working for a hotel. Sometimes the mason can call him to go
and work with him if he has a job. I am not happy that the children are not going to
school but there is nothing I can do as we find it even difficult to get food to eat. I do
not have capital to start any business and there no job here too.” Extracted from
response to item 11 of the questionnaire, March 19, 2018.

The activities of state institutions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) suggest

that a lot is being done in the area of education as regards access and coverage although
they work under challenges. NGOs’ visibility at the rural community level was fairly
observed and reported in all the regions and especially Northern and Volta Region.

For example, it was reported that Pencils of Promise has built sixty-two (62) schools—
including Hohoe Presby and Atanve Basic School. In another report, MTN Foundation
built and inaugurated a fully furnished six-unit classroom block, an office and store at a
cost GH₵170,000 Cedis for the Asikasu Methodist Basic School in the Upper West
Akyem District in the Eastern Region (ModernGhana, 2015).

Another NGO called Action Aid Ghana supported over two thousand (2000) children;
who were out-of-school benefited through their Action Aid Complementary Basic
Education (CBE) programme in the Mamprusi East District of the Northern Region to
re-enter the formal education stream. Action Aid prioritize education as it is critical to
achieve a world of dignity, justice, prosperity and peace (Action Aid Ghana, 2018).

The research team also observed the presence of the following NGOs:

PointHope Ghana, Royal Seed Home and Academy, Good Shepherd Orphanage and
Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training (DALET) which work
within the Awutu Senya District and the Municipality.

Efforts made by NGOs, corporate bodies, churches and other institutions to reduce
poverty and illiteracy is being successful and recognized, especially, in the Volta Region
and Northern. However, there is a need to provide intervention to poor children, OVC,
and needy children who are out-of-school and all pupils in the Kwao-Bondzie, Larbie
and Djan villages; and many other deprived or neglected villages in the Awutu Senya
East and Awutu Senya Districts.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 31

The study revealed that income levels are very low. In a scheduled interview with a
young lady, time: 6:12pm GMT, whose two (2) children (ages 4-7) were attending
DALET pre-school said:

“I am unemployed. I need some money to start selling something, if do a small trade I

can support my children. I do not pay school fees because I do not have any income;
sometimes food to eat becomes difficult to get, if the children are hungry, how can
they go to school? I cannot farm in Djan here because all the land is being used to
build houses, I would be glad if I get any money to start going to market to sell
something”. Extracted from response to item 11 of the questionnaire, March 04, 2018.

Conclusion

Most children become vulnerable and needy due to broken homes, unemployment of
parents and guardians, disabilities, poverty, climate change, violence and war, when
mother, father, both parents, or a primary caregiver has died. Such children need care
and protection. Many NGOs, individuals, development partners and governments
develop programs or strategies to tackle the root cause of the problem. However, how
best we apply the solutions to the first five years of a child’s education, care and
protection have so much to do with how the next 80 turn out according to billionaire
philanthropist Bill Gate.

The tagline ‘Invest early, invest smartly, and invest for all,’ was an agenda focused on
the goal of “learning for all’’, a World Bank’s Education Strategy 2020.
It is evident from this report that the parents and guardians within the most-in-need
villages such as Larbie, Djan, Kwao-Bonzie, Jei-Krodua, Papaase and its environs need
support for their children’s education. There is also a need to support NGOs that serve
the needy, orphans and vulnerable children to include them in the goal of “learning for
all’’ to achieve national development and the global goals or Sustainable Development
Goal 1 (No Poverty),10(Reduced Inequalities),and 4(Quality Education) for all.

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 32

Recommendation
Based on the findings, the following recommendation are made for possible consideration:
1. There is a need to resource the basic school at Larbie village. The School provides
quality teaching-learning outcome, however, it lacks the right number of classrooms,
suitable toilet facility, teachers, food supplies, and sufficient teaching-learning material.
Meanwhile, it is the only non-profit basic school which serve the three villages.
2 School supplies, school feeding, safe foot path and/or pedestrian cross way are basic
needs for the children. There is a need to provide pupils with exercise books, pens, pencils,
food, free school uniforms, school bus and/or safe road within the Awutu Senya District.
3. Teachers and teaching-learning resources are basic necessity to the basic school at
Larbie. There is a need to support the school’s teaching staff fair salary and volunteers
with out-of-pocket expenses reimbursement and other motivation.
4. Bi-annual community awareness programs must be organized beside Parent Teacher
Association (PTA) meetings to sensitize the villages on the importance of early childhood
education and the need to care and protect the poor, orphan and vulnerable children(OVC).

5 Child labor is a major cause of absenteeism and school dropout. There is a need to
engage civil society organizations and the government to educate and punish those who
will fail to comply with the laws.

6 Some parents and guardians are small scale farm holders and petty traders; others have
requested support for entrepreneurship and trade skill training and support in the areas of
modernized agriculture and micro-credit for them to earn income and support their own
children’s education.
The governments need to keep their promise to achieve SDGs1 (No Poverty), 8(Decent
Work and Economic Growth), and 12(Responsible Consumption and Production).

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 33

7 Social amenities and programs such as School Feeding, clinic, library and Livelihood
Empowerment against Poverty (LEAP) program have no coverage in any of the three
villages. There is a need for provision services to ensure rural community development.

8. There is low savings and low levels of financial literacy. There is a need for a financial
institution to establish its presence and operation to cover businesses in Paapase and its
environs to enable the village folks patronize, learn, and grow their businesses.

9. 1 in 4 children goes to bed hungry in Ghana (UNICEF Ghana, 2015). Poverty and
hunger grow more acute in poorest and most vulnerable population. There is a need to
provide free nutritious meals for pupils (orphans and needy children) to address SDG
2(Zero Hunger) and 3(Good Health and Well-Being).

10. The DALET( a Non -Governmental Organization) basic school is poorly equipped;
the School needs furniture, a school farm for sustainable school feeding, ICT lab. There
is a need to build six classroom block, make provision the needs –including a need for a
library in the school .

©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 34

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©2018 Development Alliance for Literacy Education and Training pg. 35