Ghana setting the pace for education reform in Africa – Namibia Deputy Education Minister

Namibia’s Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture, Dino Ballotti, says Ghana is setting the pace for education reform across Africa.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Today.com.gh on the sidelines of the 18th Ministerial Round Table of eLearning Africa at the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra, Mr. Ballotti commended Ghana’s commitment to educational transformation and innovation.

The Namibian Deputy Minister said his visits to Ghana had left him impressed by the country’s deliberate efforts to strengthen education through technology and forward-looking policies.

“This is my second visit to Ghana. First time was last year and I must say that in an African context, Ghana are really setting the trend, setting the bar when it comes to intentionality around education,” he said on Wednesday.

Mr. Ballotti noted that Ghana’s leadership in areas such as e-learning and Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) education initiatives was helping to shape conversations across the continent.

“Really on behalf of my country, Namibia, we are most not only excited, but we are most appreciative of Ghana consistently advocating for advances in education, whether that be 4IR, whether that be e-learning,” he stated.

He added that Ghana’s approach to education development offers valuable lessons for other African countries seeking to modernise their learning systems.

“I remain most impressed and I think Ghana are the catalyst for what we are trying to achieve as a continent,” he said.

The Deputy Minister explained that one of the key reasons for attending the conference was to learn from experiences being shared by participating countries and institutions.

Quoting Namibia’s late President Hage Geingob, Mr. Ballotti said he had come to “steal with my eyes and with my ears,” describing the gathering as an opportunity to observe best practices, benchmark progress and build partnerships.

He also stressed the importance of investing in education, arguing that meaningful reforms require adequate financial support.

“When we talk about resourcing education, I think that’s the advocacy work that Namibia can say. Thirty-two percent of our national budget goes toward education,” he said.

According to Mr. Ballotti, African governments must demonstrate their commitment to education through sustained funding, adding that countries that prioritise education are better positioned to achieve long-term development goals.