USAID Quips Programme and The Development of Primary Schools in the Suhum-Kraboa-Coaltar District

Abstract

Education is at the heart of development. Educating her citizenry is one of the burdens of the government over the past years. Falling standards of education in Ghana has brought about an implementation of an educational policy known as the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE) Programme by the Ghana Government. This bold educational policy had resource implications. It is against this background that Ghana Government solicited for assistance from external sources. The American government thus responded favourably through the USAID Quality Improvement in Primary Schools (QUIPS) programme. The programme was introduced in 1997. It was supposed to last for seven years, aimed at injecting efficiency and effectiveness to all stakeholders of primary education in the country for improved learning outcomes on a sustainable basis. This study evaluates the impact of the USAID QUIPS Programme in the Suhum Kraboa Coaltar District. Questionnaires and interviews were administered to the various stakeholders. The fmdings indicate that, there was a great involvement and participation of the community members towards the implementation of the programme. Infrastructure developments in the various schools have improved and also there has been an improvement in the performance of the pupils as well as the teachers. Education is a multi-faceted endeavour and that all the actors need to be involved if a holistic kind of quality education is to be realised. It is expected that teachers, parents, pupils, opinion leaders and education officials would harmonise their activities with the ultimate aim of achieving goals and objectives to promote quality education in the rural areas by helping to maintain and sustain whatever benefits they derived from the QUIPS Programme.