Content uploaded by Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa on Nov 26, 2015
Content may be subject to copyright.
This article was downloaded by: [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa]
On: 23 March 2015, At: 16:10
Publisher: Routledge
Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered
office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Click for updates
Educational Studies
Publication details, including instructions for authors and
subscription information:
http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ceds20
Publishing for pre-tertiary education
in Ghana: the 2002 textbook policy in
retrospect
Kwasi Opoku-Amankwaa, Aba Brew-Hammonda & Anatu Kande
Mahamaa
a Department of Publishing Studies, Kwame Nkrumah University of
Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana
Published online: 20 Mar 2015.
To cite this article: Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa, Aba Brew-Hammond & Anatu Kande Mahama (2015):
Publishing for pre-tertiary education in Ghana: the 2002 textbook policy in retrospect, Educational
Studies, DOI: 10.1080/03055698.2015.1018873
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2015.1018873
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE
Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the
“Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis,
our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to
the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions
and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,
and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content
should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources
of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims,
proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or
howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising
out of the use of the Content.
This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any
substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,
systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &
Publishing for pre-tertiary education in Ghana: the 2002 textbook
policy in retrospect
Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa*, Aba Brew-Hammond and Anatu Kande Mahama
Department of Publishing Studies, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology,
Kumasi, Ghana
(Received 17 August 2014; final version received 8 February 2015)
This paper assesses the performance of the “National Textbook Development
and Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary Education”of 2002. It examines the pol-
icy in theory and in practice by exploring the extent to which the liberalisation
of the textbook trade has helped to improve on textbook procurement, produc-
tion and distribution, availability, quality and access to the books. The paper dis-
cusses the context leading to the transition from the state-controlled policies to
the present liberalised textbook provision policies in Africa. The tensions that
marked the transition period and the role of the World Bank and other develop-
ment agencies in the policy shift have also been discussed. The paper identifies a
number of implementation challenges stalling the full realisation of the objec-
tives of the textbook policy including the Ministry of Education’s interference in
the textbook procurement process and some publishers’and authors’abuse of
the conflict of interest regulation in the policy. The paper makes a number of
recommendations for consideration.
Keywords: textbook policy; indigenous publishing; educational publishing;
state-controlled publishing; Ghana
Introduction
In 2002, the government of Ghana introduced a new textbook policy –National
Textbook Development and Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary Education
1
to
replace the 1963 free textbook scheme (MoE 2002a). The new policy promotes Pub-
lic–Private Partnership (PPP) by allowing private sector involvement in the writing,
publishing, printing and production and distribution of textbooks to schools.
Hitherto, under Ghana’s 1963 free textbook scheme and similar policies across the
continent, educational publishing was fully state controlled. The state employed
authors to write; the state published, printed and distributed books to the schools.
A number of factors contributed to and justified state monopoly of educational
publishing in Ghana and across Africa in the 1960s through to the early 2000s. At
the time of independence in the 1950s to the 1980s, most African governments
introduced a system of free basic education which led to a phenomenal increase in
school enrolments (Brickhill 1998). This meant that teaching and learning materials,
especially textbooks had to be produced for the large number of school children.
For example, in Ghana, the records show that school enrolment grew by about 78
*Corresponding author. Email: kopoku-amankwa.cass@knust.edu.gh
© 2015 Taylor & Francis
Educational Studies, 2015
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2015.1018873
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
per cent from 123,407 pupils in 1960, to 219,480 pupils in September 1961
(MoE 1963).
Similar to other African countries –Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Zambia –
however, Ghana had no viable indigenous publishing industry at the time of inde-
pendence in 1957 (Brickhill 1998; Brown 1975). Ghana at the time imported all her
school books from the United Kingdom (UK) and even manuscripts developed by
Ghanaian writers were sent out to UK for publishing. There were, however, a num-
ber of religious presses, who invariably combined publishing and printing of mainly
Christian literature for their church activities (Brown 1975).
The immediate preoccupation of independent African countries then, was to put
in place a system that would ensure the provision of sufficient, appropriate and inex-
pensive books to all school children; a system that would ensure equitable distribu-
tion of books to all schools irrespective of the geographical location, and, the
sociocultural and economic circumstances of the school and its pupils. State control
of educational publishing was also to ensure the development of teaching and learn-
ing materials that addressed the cultural and specific needs of the local people. Afri-
can countries decided for political, economic and educational reasons, that the
production and distribution of school materials was an aspect of business which
should be taken out of the hands of expatriate companies (Allison 1975).
African governments reckoned the levels of poverty in their countries and any
attempt to ask parents to purchase books for their wards could jeopardise the free
basic education policies (Brickhill 1998; Brown 1975). They also argued that private
publishers were more likely to concentrate their distribution and sales efforts in the
economically viable cities and towns to the disadvantage of the rural and economi-
cally disadvantaged communities (Brickhill 1998; Montagnes 2002).
With the lack of indigenous human capacity and infrastructure for local publish-
ing, the state took it upon itself to produce and supply the book needs of schools. In
Ghana, this responsibility was put into the hands of the Curriculum Research and
Development Division (CRDD) of the Ministry of Education (MoE). In addition, the
government of Ghana established the Ghana Publishing Corporation (GPC) in 1965
with one of its core objectives being to “print, publish, distribute and market books
and other reading materials for schools, higher educational institutions and the gen-
eral public”(Brown 1975, 116).
Similar state institutions, such as the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) in
Tanzania (Kira and Bukagile 2013), and, the Milton Obote Foundation, the Uganda
Publishing House and Uganda School Supplies (USS –a textbook distributor) in
Uganda (Ward, Penny, and Read 2006), were established to take charge of school-
books provision and supply in the 1960s to the 1990s under the centralised system.
In Kenya, up until 1998, four major state institutions handled school books pro-
duction and supply; the Kenya Institute of Education (KIE), the Jomo Kenyatta
Foundation; the Kenya Literature Bureau, and, the Kenya School Equipment
Scheme (KSES) (Rotich 2000,2004). In the case of Zambia, the government
established the Kenneth Kaunda Foundation in 1967, with two subsidiaries –
National Educational Company of Zambia (NECZAM), to publish educational
books written by and for Zambians, and the National Distribution Company of
Zambia (NEDCOZ), to deal with the distribution of educational materials to schools
–all this in a bid to implement the policy of Zambianising educational publishing
(Allison 1975, 60).
2K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
Challenges with state-controlled textbook provision
By monopolising educational publishing, the state left very little for indigenous pub-
lishers on the continent (Crabbe 1999). Meanwhile, African governments had chal-
lenges with the provision of schoolbooks –writers could not meet deadlines and
since there were production and distribution challenges, expatriate publishers still
controlled the market. For example Brown (1975), notes that in spite of all its
resources, the GPC had control over only 20 per cent of the Ghanaian textbook mar-
ket, 10 years after its establishment. The remaining 80 per cent was still in the hands
of foreign publishers. The local publishers were thus disadvantaged. Also in Zambia,
Macmillan & Co. Ltd owned minority shares in NECZAM right from its inception
in 1967 up until 1973. Indeed, many Zambians saw NECZAM as a “front”for the
expatriate publisher, Macmillan (Allison 1975).
The state-controlled schemes across the continent also affected literacy and liter-
ary development and the book trade in Africa generally. The local publishing indus-
try did not look attractive and lucrative to investors and the financial institutions
(Bgoya and Jay 2013). Across the continent, the local publishers survived through
the publication of children’s books, supplementary readers, the importation and sale
of paper and printing materials, etc. The state-controlled schemes equally had
implications for book distribution and selling on the continent. Specific to Ghana,
Djoleto (1979, 2) noted that:
Private bookshops, which depended on the book trade to primary and middle schools,
lost the mainstay of their business and most of them had to fold up. The few that
remained specialised in selling greeting cards and stationery mostly.
With the state providing textbooks, most parents felt reluctant to buy additional
books for their children. Meanwhile, the schools denied the children unreserved
access to the books and this affected the pupils’literacy development in various
ways (Djoleto 1979; Montagnes 2001). The state also faulted with the supply and
distribution of the books, especially to schools in the hinterlands, where there were
delays and sometimes the books never reached their destinations (Djoleto 1979,
1985; Montagnes 2001).
As Montagnes (2002, 18) and other writers noted, the publishing process was
left in the hands of civil servants who made pedagogically appropriate but unneces-
sarily costly decisions that tended to reflect economic or political priorities of the
government that controlled the purse strings, rather than sound publishing principles.
For example, a policy of one book per subject may be a pedagogically appropriate
decision, but may not be a sound publishing principle.
Transition from state to private sector participation
By the close of the 1980s, it had become evident that state provision of textbooks
was not effective and sustainable. The situation coincided with the global political
and economic wave of change during which
this tradition of state-led policies, programmes and performance came under challenge
posed by various critical issues …bureaucratic inefficiencies, diminishing performance
of public enterprises, the declining public confidence in government institutions, the
deteriorating situation of inflation …and the advocacy for market driven remedies …
(Haque 2000, 217)
Educational Studies 3
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
The rationale for market-driven remedies was to increase economic efficiency,
remove bureaucracies and streamline expansive public sector, enhance competition,
encourage market forces, expand customers’choices and improve service quality
(Haque 2000).
In education, the privatisation process took the form of education reforms includ-
ing liberalisation and decentralisation to improve service delivery and local
empowerment (Naidoo 2002). In Ghana and other sub-Sahara African countries, the
local publishers’association and other advocates for liberalisation of the textbook
market made numerous representations to their governments; however, as Brickhill
(1998, 118) asserts, “the move to break from state monopolies and liberalise was …
the decision of donors, not governments”. State monopolies were largely dependent
on foreign aid, and with the global shift to liberalisation in the 1980s, donors recon-
sidered their priorities, urging African governments to liberalise as part of the condi-
tions for future support. In spite of the clear evidence of failures of state controls,
African governments were pessimistic about liberalisation of the textbook market;
they contended that the poor communities could be marginalised.
However, pro-liberalisation advocates argued, for example, that the profit-minded
private publisher, was more likely to ensure cost recovery and sustainability of the
textbook trade, than a state or parastatal institution (Montagnes 2002). The advo-
cates also argued that state monopoly over the textbook market which is considered
“the bread and butter”of publishing, denied private publishers the possibility of
subsidising a general list with textbook sales (Brickhill 1998, 115).
Countries in Africa in particular, supported by the World Bank and other donors
such as DfID and SIDA, advocated for private participation in the provision of
social services including schoolbooks provision. The World Bank has played a semi-
nal role over the last four decades to help African countries establish effective
educational books provision systems. The Bank’s interest in textbook provision in
sub-Saharan Africa was informed by studies that showed positive correlation
between availability of textbooks and school achievement, and, which also identified
textbooks as a possible cost-effective way of providing quality education in develop-
ing countries (Altbach and Kelly 1988; Farrell and Heyneman 1989; Fuller 1987;
Fuller and Clarke 1993; Fuller and Snyder, Jr. 1991; Heyneman, Farrell, and Sepul-
veda-Stuardo 1981). Between 1965 and 1983, the World Bank supported about 24
textbook projects in sub-Saharan Africa. This figure rose to 89 by 2000. For
instance, between 1986 and 2002, the Bank spent a total of about $87 million
(World Bank 2004) to support the publishing, supply and distribution of textbooks
and other teaching and learning materials to basic schools in Ghana.
The Bank’s contribution to educational publishing in Africa has however been
criticised as being lopsided –only providing funds to support the purchase of books
and not to support capacity development in African indigenous publishing. As has
been well amplified in a number of documents, “the Bank’s policy on procurement
is to achieve value for money, whether books are obtained nationally or internation-
ally”(Montagnes 2002, 25).
Liberalisation of schoolbooks provision in Africa
Varying models of Public–Private Partnership (PPP) are being used across the conti-
nent, under which a state outfit–usually the MoE –develops the curricula and syl-
labuses, procurement arrangements, constitutes the evaluation team and sets the
4K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
selection, distribution and supply guidelines, while the private publishers develop
textbooks based on the syllabuses and criteria set by the state institution, submit the
books for evaluation, and do the distribution and marketing of the books as may be
specified by the procurement regulations. In Kenya, under the new textbook policy
introduced in 1998, the curriculum centre, KIE, sets guidelines for publishers and
recommends a total of six textbooks for each subject per grade (Rotich 2000). Book-
sellers –on behalf of publishers –then visit the schools where a 14-member “School
Instructional Materials Selection Committee”(SIMSC) selects and buys from the
approved list (Simam, Rotich, and Kemoni 2012).
Similar to Kenya, Uganda operates a limited approval list of three titles per sub-
ject for a grade (Ward, Penny, and Read 2006). Individual schools select and place
orders for books from Official Textbook Suppliers (booksellers), using local pur-
chase orders (LPOs).
A bookseller can only claim reimbursement of an LPO from the District Treasury once
the LPO has been countersigned by the head teacher, the chair of the School Manage-
ment Committee and the Sub-County Chief as ‘fully and accurately delivered’. (Ward,
Penny, and Read 2006, 67)
Unlike Kenya and Uganda, Tanzania uses unlimited approved list (Kira and Bukag-
ile 2013). The process of liberalisation of school textbook provision in Tanzania
started in 1991 as a pilot project for publishing to transfer, step-by-step, the
responsibility for textbook publishing and distribution to local commercial publish-
ers and booksellers (Kira and Bukagile 2013; Stridsman 1999). Initially, under the
pilot project, selected and trained public and private publishers published manu-
scripts developed by the TIE and who subsequently did the distribution. Since 1997,
TIE has been restricted to the development and provision of the curriculum, while
the Educational Materials Approval Committee receives and approves the national
list to guide district education officers and district book selections committees (Kira
and Bukagile 2013).
Various assessment studies of the performance of the new textbook policies in
Kenya (Mbengei and Galloway 2009; Simam, Rotich, and Kemoni 2012), Tanzania
(Kira and Bukagile 2013) and Uganda (Ward, Penny, and Read 2006), and across
the continent give divergent views on the extent to which the new policies have
enhanced efficiency in schoolbook provision. For example in Uganda, Ward, Penny,
and Read (2006, 69) noted that:
The introduction of a transparent competitive tendering process has resulted in a reduc-
tion in the unit costs of primary textbooks of approximately 60%. Thus, the unit cost
of primary school textbooks procured for P1 to P4 in 1998 was US$3.67, whereas the
unit cost of textbooks procured for the same grades and subjects in 2002 was only US
$1.53. This represents an approximate 250% increase in school purchasing power.
Kira and Bukagile (2013, 138), however, identified certain challenges and setbacks
in their study in Tanzania:
The respondents indicated that liberalisation of textbooks has resulted in frequent
change of syllabus (75%) as the leading obstacle in the implementation of the policy,
followed by the incoherence and confusion (56%), poor language (53%), corruption
(50%), questionable certified textbooks (50%) and piracy (33%).
Kira and Bukagile (2013) in Tanzania and Simam, Rotich, and Kemoni (2012)in
Kenya further noted that some publishers tend to cheat on the procurement system
Educational Studies 5
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
by submitting books with the required specifications to the national evaluation and
approval committee, but supply substandard books to the schools.
In the case of Ghana, whereas similar complaints and queries have been raised
in public discourses (The Chronicle, July 2, 2012;The Chronicle, November 29,
2012;Daily Guide, November 30, 2012, etc.), previous studies on textbooks have
tended to concentrate on availability, pupils’access to, and use of school books
(Opoku-Amankwa, 2010; Okyere et al. 1997; Owen et al. 2005) Although a more
recent study Ampratwum, Ashon, and Armah-Attoh (2012, 1) in Ghana focused on
distribution bottlenecks by “identifying the causes and magnitude of possible leak-
ages in the distribution of core textbooks to the schools”, generally, existing litera-
ture tend to give no attention to the textbook liberalisation policy and its
implications for the growth and development of the indigenous publishing industry
and education development.
Purpose of study
In this paper, we assess the performance of the National Textbook Development and
Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary Education of 2002. We examine closely the pol-
icy in theory and in practice by exploring the extent to which the liberalisation of
the textbook trade has helped to improve textbook procurement, production and dis-
tribution, availability, quality and access to the books, and the development of the
indigenous publishing industry.
Two main approaches were used to collect data for the study –document analy-
sis and interviews. Two key documents, the National Textbook Development and
Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary Education (MoE 2002a) and the Operational
Annexes to National Textbook Development and Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary
Education (MoE 2002b),were analysed. The discussions on similar policies imple-
mented in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and across sub-Sahara Africa elsewhere in the
paper provided guidelines for the analysis.Other relevant documents consulted
included, the “Tender Document for the Procurement of Teaching and Learning
Materials (TLMs) for Basic Education”issued on 23 February 2012 and which
guided the 2012 textbook procurement process, minutes of emergency meetings of
the Ghana Book Publishers’Association (GBPA) at which the Ministry of Educa-
tion’s call for procurement of textbooks were discussed, letters and correspondence
between the GBPA and the MoE, email correspondence among GBPA council mem-
bers and newspaper and media reports on textbook procurement. Formal and infor-
mal interviews were carried out with the president and executive secretary of the
GBPA and three other council members of the association –referred to as Publisher
A, Publisher B and Publisher C (Pseudonyms).
We discuss the findings under the following subheadings: the 2002 textbook pol-
icy in theory and in practice; the 2007 education reforms and books provision in
Ghana; the policy and the local printing industry; textbook procurement dilemmas;
court cases: GBPA versus MoE, and, the policy and book distribution and reading
promotion. The implications of the findings on education development, educational
publishing and literacy development are discussed. Moving forward, we propose
some strategies to help address the challenges identified.
6K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
The 2002 textbook policy in theory and in practice
The National Textbook Development and Distribution Policy was formulated by the
MoE to serve as a blue print for the development and procurement of textbooks, and
other teaching and learning materials for pre-tertiary schools in Ghana.
The National Textbook Development and Distribution Policy:
Seeks to ensure the development, selection and provision of good quality textbooks,
teachers’guides and supplementary reading books that will promote effective teaching
and learning in schools. It is an objective of the MoE that textbook usage in the class-
room by teachers and pupils should be improved and upgraded to encourage more
active pupil involvement in the learning process and to discourage rote learning and
excessive memorization. (MoE 2002a, VI)
The scope of the policy covers all textbooks, teachers’guides, supplementary read-
ing materials and other learning materials for pre-tertiary education in Ghana. Pre-
tertiary education in Ghana includes pre-school for ages 4–6 years; primary educa-
tion for ages 6–12 years; junior high school for 12–15 years, and, senior high
schools, and technical and vocational institutions ages 15–18 years. The policy is
designed to ensure the availability of books at all levels of pre-tertiary education.
For instance, one of the aims of the policy is to ensure the “timely development and
production of high quality textbooks”to meet the book needs at the pre-tertiary level
(MoE 2002a, VI).
To ensure availability of school books in schools, the policy shows government’s
commitment to achieving a textbook-to-pupil ratio of 1:1 for core subjects (English,
Mathematics and Integrated Science); and a ratio of 1:2 for all other textbooks from
primary 1 to junior high school; one teachers’guide per subject. Parents are
expected to supplement government’s efforts in subjects where the ratio of textbook
to pupils is 1:2. The benefit of this provision is that it encourages commercialisation
of the book publishing industry and encourages a book buying culture in parents
and students.
The Textbook Development and Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary Education
and its operational annexes, therefore, were seen as a step in the right direction and
hailed by Ghanaian publishers. The majority of Ghanaian publishers, printers and
booksellers, however, have not enjoyed fully the benefits of the new textbook policy
for a number of reasons. Like many other programmes and policies, the new text-
books’policy has faced implementation challenges.
The 2007 education reforms and books provision in Ghana
In 2004, the Government of Ghana made moves towards reforming the country’s
pre-university education. Measures introduced included the payment of capitation
grant
2
to schools, and the introduction of the school feeding programme
3
which
offered one meal each to primary school pupils. The government also introduced a
new education programme which changed the structure of pre-tertiary education
from 12 to 15 years comprising 2 years of pre-school, 6 years of primary, 3 years
junior high and 4 years of senior high education (Government of Ghana 2004).
Following the education reforms, new syllabuses were designed by the Ghana
Education Service (GES) and publishers developed textbooks based on the new
structure, content and syllabuses. The state called for bids which publishers readily
supplied, but just before the contracts were awarded, a new democratically elected
Educational Studies 7
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
government assumed office in 2009 and changed the four years senior high school
back to three years. A change in structure meant a change in content and hence a
change in syllabuses. This decision had a telling effect on publishing houses who
took loans from the banks to invest heavily in various book projects. The new gov-
ernment refused to purchase books from the publishers and cancelled the contracts
publishers had signed with the previous government, resulting in huge loses to the
publishers (Publishers A, B & C).
The policy and the local printing industry
A major objective of the textbook policy is to improve local capacity for the printing
and binding of books. The textbook policy stipulates that about 60 per cent of all
school books should be printed locally in Ghana.
The policy specifically states that:
It is the objective of the MoE that local capacity for printing and binding of textbooks
up to the quality standards specified in this policy document should be developed as
rapidly as possible. It is, therefore, a target of the current textbook policy that by 2005,
60 percent of all primary and junior secondary textbooks funded by the MoE (includ-
ing donor funding) should be manufactured in Ghana. (MoE 2002a, 16)
However, the printing industry in Ghana has never had the benefit of getting printing
contracts from publishers whose works are selected for procurement by the MoE for
schools. The publishers choose to print the books in Asia for various reasons includ-
ing, cheaper production cost, higher product quality and ability to deliver in rela-
tively shorter time (Hagan 2007). The MoE, which must ensure that the publishers
engage local printers, tend to support the publishers with the excuse of local printers
lack of capacity, lower quality standards and disappointing schedules (Hagan 2007).
The Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association consistently insist that
local printers have the capacity to print all the textbooks required for the schools if
the policy on book manufacturing is followed judiciously (Hagan 2007). For exam-
ple, if the MoE implements its recommendation that “paper and cover card imports
for local textbook manufacturing should be duty free on a rebate (duty draw-back)
basis”(MoE 2002a, 16), then quotations of local printers to the publishers can be
competitive with quotations from their Asian counterparts. Most printers have
invested heavily in expensive book production printing machines which are cur-
rently producing way under capacity (Hagan 2007).
Whereas Hagan (2007) and many local printers contend that the provisions of
the policy about local printing are not difficult to implement, some publishers tend
to have a contrary view. Publisher C wonders:
how can I give 60 percent of a bid I have won for English textbooks to a local printer
and the remaining to a foreign printer? There may be marked differences in the quality
of books and there could be serious problems with delivery times.
Textbook procurement dilemmas
Perhaps the biggest and most serious challenge facing Ghana’s emerging publishing
industry is the dilemma members of the GBPA go through when they bid for text-
books’contracts. A number of publishers have complained about the frustrations of
the entire process of calling for tenders, the award of contracts and the subsequent
supply of books by publishers. Traditionally, the process of publishing from
8K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
manuscript development to a finished book takes not less than six months; yet,
sometimes publishers are given barely six weeks to submit bids and to supply
books. For example, in a recent announcement of open tender for textbooks for
basic schools, prospective tenderers were initially given barely three months from
23 February 2012 to 21 May 2012 TLMS for Basic Educations 2012), then
extended to 12 June 2012 and again to 27 June 2012 to supply bids. After persistent
complaints and negotiations with the Minister of Education, the GBPA only got the
date extended for two days, from 27 to 29 June 2012 (MoE 2012).
The short notice means most of us the local publishers are unable to compete, while a
good number of those who genuinely win bids tend to produce substandard, poor qual-
ity books because of the limited time we’re given. This situation affects the quality of
education and publishing and book development in Ghana and the earlier the state
addresses the issue the better. (Publisher B)
Yet, while majority of the publishers complain about the procedure, some publishers
tend to have access to copies of syllabuses ahead of official public announcement
and prepare ahead of their colleagues whenever there is a call for tenders for text-
book procurement. For example, in 2008, one publisher (out of the over 30 local
and foreign publishers who bid for government textbooks) who had a head start,
won close to 60 per cent of a total of 100 million US dollars textbook procurement
bid. The publisher used four of his subsidiary “publishing”companies to achieve
this (Personal conversation with Fauna Atta Frempong, Executive Secretary of
GBPA on 2 November 2012).
Also, some publishers employ MoE and GES staff as authors and editors, some
of whom eventually work in the textbook selection teams, contravening a key tenet
of the textbook policy (MoE 2002b, 11) which indicates that:
In the interest of transparency, CRDD, MoE and GES staff who are involved as
authors, editors, staff members, consultants, advisors or stakeholders of participating
publishing houses must declare their interests as soon as possible. The Evaluation
Coordinating Committee (ECC) will establish a publicly available register of interests.
Any individual with declared interest cannot participate in evaluation or trial testing of
any course materials in the subject and grade submitted for evaluation and selection.
The textbook procurement process became a matter for national discussion in 2012
and was widely reported in the media (The Chronicle, July 2, 2012;The Chronicle,
November 29, 2012;Daily Guide, November 30, 2012;The Finder, November 30,
2011;Herald, September 28, 2012, etc.) when the GBPA and other interests groups
raised queries about alleged attempts to flout the laid down procedures spelt out in
the policy and other guidelines for purchasing schoolbooks. For example, the guide-
line for the procurement of textbooks makes provision for the maximum number of
books per subject to be purchased:
For Primary Schools, a maximum of five textbooks per subject and grade level will be
selected. For Junior Secondary Schools, a maximum of five textbooks per subject and
grade level will be selected. (MoE 2002b, 8)
The reasoning behind this provision according to the policy is to “ensure that there
will be a sufficient market to adequately reward participating publishers and to
achieve economic print runs and good prices”(MoE 2002b, 8).
In their initial announcement for tenders, spelt out in the tender document issued
on 23 February 2012, however, the MoE indicated that (MoE 2012a, 38):
Educational Studies 9
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
For primary subjects using Twi or English as the languages of instruction, a
maximum of eight TLMs per subject and grade level will be selected.
For primary subjects using Ewe, Dagbani or Gonja as the language of instruc-
tion, a maximum of three books per subject and grade level will be selected.
For junior secondary subjects, a maximum of eight TLMs per subject and
grade level will be selected.
Similar to the reasons in the Operational Annexes stated above, the tender docu-
ment indicated that the “limitations on the number eight (8) of ‘selected’TLMs have
been imposed to ensure that there will be a sufficient market to adequately reward
participating Tenderers (Publishers) and to achieve economic print runs and good
prices”(MoE 2012a, 38).
The Ministry immediately issued an addendum to say that the five (5) highest
ranked TLMs evaluated would be selected and purchased by the Ministry in all sub-
jects and not eight (8) as specified in the tender document. This was to conform to
the provisions in the textbook policy. However, in another Addendum (Addendum
3) to prospective tenderers, the Ministry indicated that “Only one (1) highest ranked
TLMs submission evaluated would be selected and purchased by the Ministry and
not five (5) as indicated in addendum No. 1”(MoE 2012b).
In our interviews and correspondence with the president and executive secretary
of GBPA, and Publishers A, B and C, it became apparent that the decision to pur-
chase only one book per subject was taken unilaterally by the Minister of Education
and flouted the policy which states explicitly that: “The MoE undertakes to consult
Parent Groups, Teachers, Publishers and Booksellers before taking any decision to
amend the number of permitted selected titles per subject, grade level and language
of instruction”(MoE 2002b, 8; MoE 2012a, 38).
This is how Publisher C expressed his frustrations and deep reservations about
how the Minister of Education is unfairly treating the members of the GBPA:
We asked for our burdens to be lessened ... instead our burdens have been increased. I
seem to get the impression that there is a joke going on at our expense ... who is able
to produce and ship 500,000 of books with 20 percent local printing in 60 days? Any-
body with the appreciation of publishing knows this is impossible. (Publisher C’s email
correspondence with council members, GBPA, June 20, 2012)
Court cases: GBPA versus MoE
After persistent appeals to the MoE to revert to the guidelines spelt out in the text-
book policy and the tender document had failed, the GBPA was compelled to go to
a high court in Ghana to file a motion for an interim injunction against the Minister
of Education
4
(Personal conversation with Asare Konadu Yamoah, President, GBPA,
October 15, 2012).
The GBPA filed a case in court on 9 August 2012 at the Accra High Court to
seek the following reliefs:
(1) A declaration that the first defendant’s (MoE) decision stated in his third
addendum to change the book policy post-submission of tenders is unfair
and contrary to the law.
10 K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
(2) In the alternative or in addition, a declaration that the third addendum of the
current tender is of no force or effect and that the book policy on the basis
of which the tender process began and on the basis of which members of the
plaintiff’s association submitted tenders remains in full force and effect
(GBPA 2012, 4).
Since the introduction of the textbook policy in 2002, the GBPA has had cause
to summon the MoE at the high courts of Ghana on two occasions; in 2005 and in
2012 (Asare Konadu Yamoah, President, GBPA 15 October 2012). In 2005, the
MoE entered into a sole supplier agreement with a foreign-based publisher, Macmil-
lan, to procure supplementary books to the tune of $28 million for supply to basic
schools in Ghana, contrary to the provisions of the textbook policy. The GBPA took
the MoE to the court after their (GBPA’s) persistent protests were ignored. “The
court eventually ruled in our favour indicating that the MoE flouted the book pro-
curement regulations and that, books unlike other goods and services could not be
purchased through sole sourcing”(Asare Konadu Yamoah, President, GBPA October
15, 2012).
The policy and book distribution and reading promotion
Book distribution in Ghana is considered the weakest link in the book chain
(Opoku-Amankwa, Mahama, and Ry-Kottoh 2012) and, to address this deficiency,
the textbook policy proposed a decentralised system to involve the publishers, dis-
trict directors of education and local booksellers in the distribution:
In pursuit of this policy, booksellers with reliable haulage warehouse facilities in the
districts will be encouraged to participate in the Ministry’s Textbook Development pro-
gramme ... (MoE 2002a, 18)
Unfortunately, very little has been done to achieve this objective during the more
than 10 years of implementation of the policy, and this has compelled major Ghana-
ian booksellers to venture into textbook publishing in order to survive in the book
trade.
Another key aim of the policy is to develop school and classroom libraries at all
levels of education since the library is seen as an essential tool for the development
of reading fluency, student research capacity and active student learning (MoE
2002a, VI). In line with this, GES instituted library and reading time in basic
schools in the early years of the implementation of the policy. This laudable policy,
like many others, faced implementation challenges and is now almost nonexistent in
the schools. The situation with community libraries is not any better. A full imple-
mentation of this aspect of the policy would mean the government would have to
buy more books; novels, children’s books, reference books, trade books, etc., from
publishers and also orient teachers on literacy practices.
Implications
The transition from state-controlled to private sector participation in textbook provi-
sion in the late 1980s was based on the conviction that private sector participation in
textbook provision would improve service quality and increase economic efficiency
by removing bureaucracies and enhancing competition. It was also argued that the
Educational Studies 11
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
process would help develop the emerging indigenous publishing sector on the conti-
nent (Brickhill 1998; Montagnes 2002; Ward, Penny, and Read 2006, etc.).
However, the evidence from this study as well as from studies in Tanzania,
Kenya and Uganda discussed elsewhere in the paper tends to suggest that very little
has changed from state-controlled to private sector participation in textbook provi-
sion. Textbook provision in Ghana and indeed across sub-Saharan Africa under the
liberalised schemes is still plagued with laborious bureaucratic processes, corrupt
practices, lack of transparency and other implementation challenges.
The challenges associated with the implementation of the textbook policy have
serious implications for pre-tertiary education and book development generally in
Ghana; the quality of most of the textbooks accepted and procured for use in the
schools tend to be sub-standard, with poor content matter, editorial and production
infractions. In 2010 for instance, a group of textbooks researchers in Ghana –Text-
books and Educational Media Studies (TEEMS), called for the withdrawal of a gov-
ernment approved textbook –the Enrich English textbook
5
which was in use in the
junior high school classrooms; as according to TEEMS, the series was of poor quality
in terms of content matter and the accompanying teachers’guide only supplied
answers to sample questions in the textbooks (Daily Graphic, August 8, 2010).
The failure of the procurement procedure to identify and recognise books as
unique products also has implications on access. A number of studies including
(Opoku-Amankwa 2010) and Ampratwum, Ashon, and Armah-Attoh (2012,3)
revealed that:
Pupil-core textbook ratios in two-thirds or more of the schools did not meet the Min-
istry of Education’s one textbook per pupil policy.
Similarly, Opoku-Amankwa (2010) noted in a study in primary classrooms in the
Ashanti Region of Ghana that contrary to the requirements of the policy, the text-
book-to-pupil ratio in most classrooms was 1:3. These findings tend to defeat one of
the core objectives of the policy, which is to achieve a pupil-textbook ratio of 1:1
for core subjects (English, Mathematics and Integrated Science); and a ratio of 1:2
for all other textbooks from primary 1 to junior high school.
Moving forward
Even though the challenges confronting the textbook liberalisation programmes in
African countries may look similar, we tend to agree with Read (2011) that there are
no universal solutions which can apply because there are so many different national
situations. For example, whereas Ghana is struggling to involve booksellers in the
procurement and distribution process, Kenya has been able to successfully integrate
booksellers into the country’s book trade. We, therefore, make these recommenda-
tions specific to the Ghanaian situation, however, with the hope that they may be
useful to other situations.
Moving forward, we advocate the enactment and enforcement of legislation to
support and reinforce the textbook policy. There is need for a legislative instrument
that makes it mandatory for publishers bidding for government textbook projects to
select from a pool of specially trained and certified authors. Textbooks, unlike trade
and other books, act as surrogate curriculum, and their importance transcend the
classroom. The production of textbooks should not therefore be left in the hands of
anybody who can read and write, but should be restricted to accredited publishers
12 K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
and specially trained textbook writers and editors. This move would aim at eliminat-
ing alleged corruption from the tender and procurement process. Equally, the text-
book evaluation team has to be made public to the publishers as stipulated in the
policy. This is to avoid conflict of interest –the situation where authors manage their
way onto the evaluation team and end up assessing their own manuscripts.
We further propose the establishment of a book development fund to help
develop authorship, train and build capacity of publishers, printers and book dis-
tributors in the processes of textbook production. Another issue that needs to be
addressed by the government is the long standing issue of tax incentives for the
local book industry. The state should make it easy for the local book publishers to
flood schools, homes and bookshops with quality yet cheaply priced books. Further,
the policy of 60 per cent local printing which has become a bone of contention
between publishers and printers need to be re-examined.
As rightly pointed out by various researchers (Altbach and Kelly 1988; Farrell
and Heyneman 1989; Fuller 1987; Fuller and Clarke 1993; Fuller and Snyder, Jr.
1991; Haggarty and Pepin 2002; Heyneman, Farrell, and Sepulveda-Stuardo 1981;
Heyneman and Jamison 1980; Kalmus 2004; Liu 2005; etc.), the school textbook is
fundamental to schooling, especially in classrooms in developing countries where
for most students the textbook is the main and sometimes only source of learning
material available to them. There is the need then to ensure that the challenges stal-
ling the successful implementation of the textbook policy in Ghana and indeed
across Africa, are addressed.
Notes
1. The National Textbook Development and Distribution Policy for Pre-Tertiary Education
in Ghana, was originally published under the title: Textbooks Development and Distribu-
tion Policy for Basic Education in 2002.The name was changed in 2006 following some
revisions to the document.
2. In 2005, the Government of Ghana introduced the capitation grant system under which
the state absolved the fees of all basic school children. Under the system, the government
of Ghana pays the Cedi equivalent of about $3.00 per pupil for each year to the schools.
3. School feeding programme is a Government of Ghana programme which provides one
nutritious meal a day for all public basic school children. Its immediate goal is to reduce
hunger and malnutrition, increase school enrolment and attendance and stimulate local
food production.
4. The GBPA is still in court to seek to reverse the third addendum which sought to select
one publisher per lot. However, information from the MoE indicates that the contracts
have been awarded to “deserving”publishers.
5. Enrich English textbooks turned out to be one of the books produced by the publisher
who won 60 per cent of the total bid in 2008.
Notes on contributors
Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa is a senior lecturer in the Department of Publishing Studies, Kwame
Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. He holds a PhD from the
University of Reading, UK. His research interests include language and literacy studies, bilin-
gual and mother tongue literacy, and textbooks studies, etc.
Aba Brew-Hammond (Mrs) is a lecturer in the Department of Publishing Studies, Kwame
Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. She holds MA in compara-
tive literature from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
Her research interests include literacy development, authorship studies, African comparative
literature, etc.
Educational Studies 13
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
Anatu Kande Mahama (Mrs) is a lecturer in the Department of Publishing Studies, Kwame
Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. She has MA in information
science management and another in intellectual property and she is currently pursuing her
PhD in Loughborough University, UK. Her research interests include literacy development,
intellectual property, etc.
References
Adu, E. K. 2012 “Education Ministry in $100 M Debt Saga.”Daily Guide, November 30, 6.
Alhassan, I. 2012. “NDC Cancels $100 M Contract.”The Chronicle, November 29, 3.
Allison, S. D. 1975. “State Participation in Publishing: The Zambian Experience.”In Pub-
lishing in Africa in the Seventies, edited by E. Oluwasanmi, E. McLean, and H. Zell, 59–
69: Proceedings of an international conference on publishing and book development held
at the University of Ile-Ife, Nigeria, December 16–20, 1973.
Altbach, P. G., and G. P. Kelly. 1988. Textbooks in the Third World: Policy, Content and
Context. New York: Garland.
Ampratwum, E. F., M. A. Ashon, and D. Armah-Attoh. 2012. Public Expenditure Tracking
Survey in Education: Tracking Possible Leakages in the Supply and Distribution of Text-
books in Public Primary Schools in Ghana. Accra: CDD.
Asare, E. 2010 “Withdraw ‘Enrich English Language’Textbooks: Researchers Demand.”
Daily Graphic, August 8. 11.
Bgoya, W., and M. Jay. 2013. “Publishing in Africa from Independence to the Present Day.”
Research in African Literatures 44 (2): 17–34.
“Book Policy Draws ‘Blood’.”2012. The Chronicle, July 2, 3.
Brickhill, P. 1998 “The Transition from State to Commercial Publishing Systems in African
Countries.”In Publishing and Development: A Book of Readings, edited by P. G. Altbach
and D. Teferra, 111–130. Bellagio studies in publishing, 9. Chestnut Hill, MA: Bellagio
Publishing Network.
Brown, A. K. 1975 “State Publishing in Ghana: Has it Benefited Ghana?”In Publishing in
Africa in the Seventies, edited by E. Oluwasanmi, E. McLean, and H. Zell, 113–127. Pro-
ceedings of an International Conference on Publishing and Book Development held at
the University of Ile-Ife, Nigeria, 16–20, 1973.
“Corruption Hits Government Free Textbook Policy.”Herald, September 28, 2012. 5.
Crabbe, R. A. B. 1999. “The Transition to Privatisation in Publishing: Ghana’s Experience.”
In Educational Publishing in Global Perspectives: Capacity Building, and Trends, edited
by S. Sosale, 71–85. Washington DC: World Bank.
Djoleto, S. A. A. 1979. “The Book Trade of Ghana and the Ghana Booksellers Association.”
Ghana Book World 2: 1–4.
Djoleto, S. A. A. 1985. Books and Reading in Ghana. Paris: UNESCO.
Farrell, J. P., and S. P. Heyneman. 1989. Textbooks in the Developing World. Washington
DC: World Bank.
Fuller, B. 1987. “What School Factors Raise Achievement in the Third World?”Review of
Educational Research 57 (3): 255–292.
Fuller, B., and P. Clarke. 1993. “Raising School Effects While Ignoring Culture? Local
Conditions and the Influence of Classroom Tools, Rules and Pedagogy.”Review of
Educational Research 64 (1): 119–157.
Fuller, B., and C. W. Snyder, Jr. 1991. “Vocal Teachers, Silent Pupils? Life in Botswana
Classrooms.”Comparative Education Review 35 (2): 274–294.
Ghana Book Publishers Association 2012 Annual report. Unpublished.
Government of Ghana. 2004. White Paper on the Report of the Educational Reform Review
Committee. Accra: Ghana Government.
Hagan, P. 2007. “The Impact of Job Opportunities to the Printing Industry in the Context of
the New Educational Reform.”A Paper Presented by the President of the Ghana Printers
and Paper Converters Association, Northern Sector, at a Workshop Organised by the
Ghana Book Development Council and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports at
KNUST, Kumasi, 29–30. Ghana Government.
14 K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
Haggarty, L., and B. Pepin. 2002. “An Investigation of Mathematics Textbooks and Their
Use in English, French and German Classrooms: Who Gets an Opportunity to Learn
What?”British Educational Research Journal 28 (4): 567–590.
Haque, M. S. 2000. “Privatization in Developing Countries: Formal Causes, Critical Reasons,
and Adverse Impacts.”In Privatization or Public Enterprise Reform?, edited by A.
Farazmand, 217–238. Westport CT: Greenwood Press.
Heyneman, S. P., J. Farrell, and M. Sepulveda-Stuardo. 1981. “Textbooks and Achievement
in Developing Countries: What We Know.”Journal of Curriculum Studies 13 (3): 227–
246.
Heyneman, S. P., and D. T. Jamison. 1980. “Student Learning in Uganda: Textbook Avail-
ability and Other Factors.”Comparative Education Review 24 (2): 206–220.
Kalmus, V. 2004. “What Do Pupils and Textbooks Do with Each Other? Methodological
Problems of Research on Socialization through Educational Media.”Journal of Curricu-
lum Studies 36 (4): 469–485.
Kira, E., and G. Bukagile. 2013. “Perceptions of Education Stakeholders on the Implications
of Textbooks Liberalisation Policy in Tanzania.”Journal of Education Practice 4 (1):
136–143.
Kyeremeh, G. 2011. “Rip-off: Government Textbooks Being Sold Illegally.”The Finder,
November 30, 1.
Liu, Y. 2005. “Discourse, Cultural Knowledge and Ideology: A Critical Analysis of Chinese
Language Textbooks.”Pedagogy, Culture and Society 13 (2): 233–264.
Mbengei, B. N., and F. Galloway. 2009. “The Impact of Policy Changes in the Education
Sector on the Development of the Book Publishing Industry in Kenya.”Mousaion 27 (1):
159–174.
MoE (Ministry of Education). 1963. Ghana Ministry of Education: Education Report 1960–
62. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on Behalf of Ministry of Education.
MoE (Ministry of Education). 2002a. Textbook Development and Distribution Policy for
Basic Education. Accra: CRDD for Ministry of Education.
MoE (Ministry of Education). 2002b. Operational Annex to the Textbook Development and
Distribution Policy for Basic Education. Accra: CRDD for Ministry of Education.
MoE (Ministry of Education). 2012a. Tender Document for the Procurement of Teaching and
Learning Materials (TLMS) for Basic Education. ICT No. MOE/EDUC/23/02/2012.
MoE (Ministry of Education). 2012b. Addendum No. 3, to the Procurement of Teaching and
Learning Materials (TLMS) for Basic Education. ICT No. MOE/EDUC/23/02/2012.
Montagnes, I. 2001. Textbooks and Learning Materials:1990–99. Paris: UNESCO.
Montagnes, I. 2002. World Bank Support for Provision of Textbooks in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Washington, DC: Human Development Sector, World Bank.
Naidoo, J. P. 2002. “Education Decentralization in Sub-Saharan Africa –Espoused Theories
and Theories in Use.”Paper presented at CIES Annual Conference, Orlando, FL. Hosted
by University of Central Florida, March 6–9, 2002
Okyere, B., A. Mensah, H. Kugbey, and A. Harris. 1997. What Happens to the Textbooks?
Research Report on the Availability and Utilisation of Materials in the Central Region of
Ghana. Phase II Study. Cape Coast/Arlington, VA: University of Cape Coast/American
Institute for International Research in Collaboration with; the Academy for Educational
Development, Education Development Centre Inc., Juárez and Associates Inc., The
University of Pittsburgh.
Opoku-Amankwa, K. 2010. “Textbooks and Literacy Development in a Multilingual School
in Ghana.”In Research for Materials Development in Language Learning: Evidence for
best Practice, edited by B. Tomlinson and H. Masuhara, 305–317. London: Continuum.
Opoku-Amankwa, K., K. A. Mahama, and L. Ry-Kottoh. 2012. “Itinerant Booksellers:
Necessary Evils to the Book Trade in Ghana?”Publishing Research Quarterly 28 (3):
250–258. doi:10.1007/s12109-012-9281-4.
Owen, W., E. Randolph, L. Casley-Hayford, R. O’Shaughnessy, W. Snyder, E. Gyamera, L.
O. Ansah et al. 2005. A Look at Learning in Ghana: The Final Evaluation of USAID/
Ghana’s Quality Improvement in Primary Schools (QUIPS) Programme. Accra: USAID/
Ghana.
Read, A. 2011. Learning and Teaching Materials: Policy and Practice for Provision. Guid-
ance Note –A DFID Practice Paper. London: DFID.
Educational Studies 15
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
Rotich, D. C. 2000. “Textbook Publishing in Kenya under a New Policy on School Textbook
Procurement.”Publishing Research Quarterly 16 (2): 60–72.
Rotich, D. C. 2004. “The Affordability of School Textbooks in Kenya: Consumer
Experiences in the Transformation to a Liberalising Economy.”Nordic Journal of African
Studies 13 (2): 175–187.
Simam, R. C., D. C. Rotich, and H. Kemoni. 2012. “Educational Publishing and Provision of
Quality Primary School Textbooks in Kenya.”Inkanyiso, Journal of Humanities and
Social Sciences 4 (2): 117–127.
Stridsman, M. 1999. “A New Textbook Policy in Tanzania.”In Educational Publishing in
Global Perspectives: Capacity Building, and Trends, edited by S. Sosale, 86–88.
Washington, DC: World Bank.
Ward, M., A. Penny, and A. Read. 2006. Education Reform in Uganda 1997 to 2004: Reflec-
tions on Policy, Partnership, Strategy and Implementation. London: Department for
International Development.
World Bank. 2004. Books, Buildings, and Learning Outcomes: An Impact Evaluation of
World Bank Support to Basic Education in Ghana. Washington, DC: World Bank.
16 K. Opoku-Amankwa et al.
Downloaded by [Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa] at 16:10 23 March 2015
