Convener of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for Education, Madam Joyce Laryoh has raised concerns about the state of basic education in the country and urging the government to prioritize it.

According to her, basic education is considered a fundamental pillar of the educational system, and addressing its challenges is crucial.

She stated that a recent survey conducted by CSOs in the educational sector highlights the alarming state of basic education as it reveals that out of 5,400 schools operating under inadequate conditions such as trees, sheds, and dilapidated structures, only 17 schools have been completed in the past three years under the current administration.

This, according to her, lack of progress in improving infrastructure greatly affects the quality of education provided.

Madam Joyce Laryoh also mentioned that when teachers are deployed based on political affiliations rather than merit and need, it hampers effective teacher management and equitable distribution of teachers and this practice particularly impacts districts where Members of Parliament (MPs) are not from the ruling government, leading to imbalances in teacher allocation and hindering equal access to quality education.

To address these challenges, Madam Joyce Laryoh recommends increasing the budgetary allocation to education since the allocation of funds stands at 12 percent of the total national budget, but she suggests raising it to at least 15 percent.

She is, therefore, emphasizing the urgency of prioritizing basic education, addressing infrastructure challenges, ensuring equitable teacher deployment, and allocating a higher budget to education.