Education

NCCE takes Education on the Environment to Basic Schools

The NCCE takes Education on the Environment to Basic Schools as part of its citizenship week celebration for the under the project theme “A clean Ghana, Our Responsibility”. The Weeklong celebration is from 27^th May to June 3^rd 2019.

The project is aimed at educating children in basic schools on how to be responsible in managing and using the environment in the right way to ensure, we reduce pollution, the misuse of the environment and promote good hygiene.

The national wide citizenship week celebration aims at reaching ten thousand (10,000) basic schools nationwide with the commission’s broad theme for the year “Ghana, One People: Our Values, Our Sovereignty in Participatory Democracy”

At the Mempeasem Evangelical School, in East Legon, The Principal Civic Education Officer, Mr. Albert Odoi Anim from the Greater Accra Regional Office of the NCCE educated the children on environmental cleanliness and the need to be good citizens that are also responsible.

Mr. Albert Odoi Anim said: “We must perform our civic duties, must not litter, throw solid waste into drains and dispose of refuse appropriately since all these will help keep our environment clean and prevent us from experiencing avoidable floods and other bad outcomes that threaten the lives of humans and animals.”

The children were advised not to litter, always drop litters in bins, stop dumping solid waste into drains meant for liquid waste since these can contribute to the flooding of our communities.

NCCE takes Education on the Environment to Basic Schools

The school children admitted that, as members of the community, they are part of the problem but can become part of the solution through attitudinal change. They were also urged to cultivate the habit of being responsible and change their attitudes toward the environment.

According to statistics, Ghana is among the ten (10) most polluted places on earth and is among the top 50 countries with the biggest dump sites (Blacksmith Institute, 2013)

He encouraged the use of biodegradable materials instead of plastics which take so long to degrade.

The SDG 6 and SDG 14 deal with the protection of our environment and requires that efforts are made to conserve it as well. Using teaching-learning materials (IMAGES) he reinforced the need to clean our environment as good citizens, keep out water bodies clean among others.

The frightening reality is that, foam plastic cups take up to 50 years to decompose whiles plastic beverage holder, Disposable diapers and plastic bottles take between 400 and 450 years to decompose. After the lesson, all the pupils raised their hands to indicate their readiness to change their attitudes. The pupils also pledge for cleanliness thus to practice it at home and at school while educating others on what they have learnt at the training session.

Mr. Albert Odoi Anim called for the need to reduce waste, reuse and recycle waste in homes, schools and workplaces. This calls for lifestyle changes among the citizens. Positive attitudes towards the environment and sanitation will go a long way to help improve on our environment which does not only supply all the needs of man but also receives the waste generated.

The NCCE is, therefore, calling on all, starting with the school child to be guided to make conscious efforts toward disposing of refuse the right way, reduce the excessive use of plastics and consider paper cups, bags and related materials. The call on the need to assist children to think of creative ways in which plastics can be used to produce items such as pencil cases, bags, piggy banks and the likes all in an attempt to reduce the volume of waste in our environment.

To help sustain this environmental awareness effort, the NCCE also intends to establish Citizenship clubs in schools to help drive home the agenda of the commission.