President John Dramani Mahama has firmly rejected claims that his government has approved a policy to introduce Arabic and Chinese as subjects across Ghana’s public schools.
Speaking during a citizens’ engagement at the University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (UBIDS) in the Upper West Region on Saturday, 12 September, as part of his Resetting Ghana Tour, the President said no such policy had received Cabinet approval and called on the public to disregard the reports.
“No such policy has been approved by the cabinet that I chair. So let’s put that matter to rest once and for all,” President Mahama said.
He questioned the wisdom of introducing Chinese at a time when Ghana is still struggling to recruit enough teachers to properly deliver French lessons — a language he described as especially important because of the country’s shared borders with Francophone neighbours.
“We’re not even getting a handle on the teaching of French. Why would we go and introduce Chinese?” he asked.
On the teaching of Arabic, the President clarified that its presence in some schools is not the result of any new nationwide policy.
He explained that English-Arabic schools were set up during the era of the late former President Jerry John Rawlings to encourage Muslim communities that had been hesitant to enrol their children for fear of religious conversion.
Arabic teacher training has therefore continued to support instruction in those specific English-Arabic schools.
“But there’s no new policy to introduce Arabic and Chinese in all public schools in Ghana,” he stressed.
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