By Olimatou Coker
Ismaila Ceesay, President of the Gambia Teachers’ Union (GTU), has renewed calls for improved conditions and services.
Ceesay said the education sector needs teachers who are well-trained, supported and valued to guarantee quality education for all Gambians and raising the national drive for education to meet the targets of the 2030 Agenda.
GTU on Thursday joined the global community in celebrating World Teacher’s Day. This year’s domesticated theme focuses on “ The teachers we need for the education we want. Established an educational service commission now”.
The celebration was held at Paradise Suites Hotel. Alongside the celebration, the Union launched supplementary reading books authored by some Gambian teachers. The book launch is a culmination of a book writing project funded by Education International and implemented by the Gambia Teachers’ Union.
World Teachers Day amis to focus on “appreciating, assessing and improving the educators of the world” and to provide an opportunity to consider issues related to teachers and teaching.
“Our union wants to indulge not only the Gambia Government but all partners in the business of education to support our teachers and students,” he said.
He also quoted the saying that no nation’s education can be better than the quality of its teachers. “It therefore should be our priority to better the lot of our teachers by remunerating them well, better their conditions of service and making sure that teacher workload commensurate to that which human rights allows”.
He said according to UNESCO however, the world faces an unprecedented global teacher shortage exacerbated by a decline in conditions and status. “As a result this year 2023, World Teachers’ Day has put the importance of a dignified and valued teaching profession at the top of the global agenda. As the theme “The teachers we need for the education we want: The global imperative to reverse the teacher shortage”, our union would want to advocate that the Government of The Gambia put an end to decline in the number of teachers and then drive towards the increase not only in the number but also the quality of teachers for profession. By such a drive it will have to take deliberate measures such as putting an education service commission that will look into the welfare of teachers, educators and all those that are concern with business education provision in the country.”
GTU president also thanked their partners and well-wishers in particular the Government of The Gambia through the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Education International, Irish Education, among others.
