Gov’t to align NGOs, CSOs’ activities with national education priorities – Apaak

Deputy Minister for Education, Dr. Clement Abas Apaak, has disclosed that the government has begun steps to align Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) interventions with national education priorities.

Dr. Apaak, who spoke during a stakeholder engagement, said the objective was to improve coordination and maximise the impact of ongoing reforms.

Dr. Apaak said the Ministry considers alignment essential to the successful implementation of the National Education Committee’s recommendations.

“The Ministry considers implementation as a collective national responsibility that requires coordinated action by government, agencies, development partners, NGOs, and CSOs,” he stated.

He explained that while non-governmental and civil society organisations continue to play a vital role in the education sector, gaps remain in how their activities connect to national reform priorities.

“There remains a critical information gap regarding the specific sub-sectors, thematic areas, and reform priorities to which individual institutions are contributing,” he said.

According to Dr. Apaak, the Ministry has therefore initiated a systematic process to map NGO and CSO interventions across the education sector.

“For this reason, the Ministry considers it necessary to systematically map the activities of NGOs, and CSOs across the education sector in order to ensure coherence, complementarity and effective coordination,” he noted.

He said the exercise would also help eliminate inefficiencies in the deployment of limited resources.

“Accordingly, this exercise is intended to prevent duplication and overlap of interventions, to identify areas of synergy and collaboration, and to assign institutions to appropriate education sub-sectors and implementation tasks derived from the National Education Committee recommendations,” Dr. Apaak stated.

The Deputy Minister acknowledged the contribution of NGOs and CSOs to education delivery, noting that their work spans basic, secondary, technical and vocational, tertiary, and inclusive education.

“Without your dedication, innovation, and commitment, many vulnerable and underserved populations would remain excluded from educational opportunities,” he said.

Dr. Apaak indicated that similar structured engagements had already been held with government agencies and development partners, adding that extending the process to NGOs and CSOs reflected their importance in translating policy into results.

“Your inclusion in this process reflects the Ministry’s recognition of your strategic role as implementation partners and key actors in translating policy recommendations into practical outcomes at the community, district, regional, and national levels,” he said.

He said the Ministry remains committed to providing leadership and a coordination framework to advance Ghana’s education reform agenda through aligned and collaborative action.