Partnership Bureau, a member of the Ghana Science and Tech Explorer Prize (GSTEP) consortium, has engaged public sector stakeholders ahead of the 2025 GSTEP challenge.
The roundtable discussion held on November 7, 2024, at the Ministry of Education Conference Room was on the theme “Strengthening the Impact of STEM Education in Ghana.”
The event brought together key stakeholders, including representatives from the Ministry of Education, the Ghana Education Service (GES), regional and district directors of education, heads of Junior High Schools as well as STEM and ICT coordinators across the counrty.
Francis Ahene-Affoh, Lead for Partnerships & Alliances at the Partnership Bureau, opened the workshop, expressing gratitude to all attendees for their participation. He acknowledged Hon. Yaw Adu-Twum, the Minister of Education, as a strong advocate for STEM education, practical education, and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), emphasising the vital role of stakeholders in collaboratively enhancing STEM initiatives in Ghana.
Mr. Aaron Twum Akwaboah, the Director of Strategy and Innovation at the Ministry of Education, delivered a keynote address, urging all attendees to envision the young individuals whose futures are being shaped through their efforts. He encouraged the incoming cohorts of the GSTEP Challenge 2025 to believe in their capabilities and actively seek to address issues within their communities, highlighting that even small initiatives can lead to significant changes.
He stated, “Do what you want and do what you believe can change the world. In your community, there is an issue and concern you want to solve. Whatever it is, it is not too small, and it’s not too big. You will never know what you will be able to create. Make sure you do something that can transform your town, transform your country, and transform the world.”
Madam Olivia Serwaa Opare, Director of the Science Education Unit at GES, reinforced the importance of collaboration in STEM education, acknowledging the strides Ghana has made in capacity building. She noted the extensive training provided to thousands of teachers, facilitated by both the Ministry of Education and non-governmental organisations like GSTEP
“The programme has been so useful so far as the teaching and learning of STEM is concerned at the junior high school level. It is a good platform for bringing STEM educators together to share ideas on good practices, challenges, and how best we could have solutions to our challenges, and collectively we were able to come up with solutions.”
Constance Agyeman, Founder of the GSTEP Challenge, also emphasised the need for more ongoing discussions among industry stakeholders to collectively enhance existing STEM education programs.
She advocated for the inclusion of diverse perspectives to avoid siloed efforts and enhance the overall value of STEM initiatives.
“I want to flag that we are trying to bring forward policy leaders, the practitioners in different services, trainers, and industry players to add value to the STEM education that is already in existence and co-design it collectively. We only have one perspective or another, and we are missing how that connection happens if we don’t work as a team. We seek to add value rather than start different activities that will run in silos. The GSTEP programme seeks to enhance effectively what is already taking place.”
