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Tamale, Ghana – Interim Executives of the Alumni Association of the Tamale School of Hygiene have been tasked to mobilise resources for the redevelopment and expansion of existing infrastructure of the school.
According to Principal of the school, Bello Seiwu, the school since its establishment two decades ago, has produced many environmental officers for district assemblies and other state institutions.
He is however not too happy that former students have not organized themselves over the years in order to support the school which trained them and gave them a career.
Addressing a parked auditorium at the maiden meeting of current and former students on the school campus on Saturday October 13, 2018, Mr. Seiwu appealed to all former students to ‘return home’ to see what they could contribute to the development of the school.
“As you can see, the school is not fenced; buildings are falling apart, lack of tutors offices and many challenges. We cannot achieve all these without the support of alumni. Your Alma mater is therefore looking forward to you as you gather here today, to brainstorm and come out with innovative ways to develop it as it continuous to train your sons and daughters, brothers and sisters to go out and impact lives with communities they engage with as well as globally”, he said.
Dubbed: “Proactive Alumni, Key to The Development of Alma Mater”, the occasion was well attended and spiced up with different traditional performances by students of the school.
The reunion of former and current students of the Tamale School of Hygiene climaxed with the election of six interim executives to lead the alumni front and mobilise resources for the refurbishment and expansion of the school’s infrastructure.
Mr. Issifu Tahidu Nasona who is a tutor of the Tamale School of Hygiene was elected Interim President. He told Savannah News in an interview that, the main focus of the executives now is to organize a homecoming event which would bring together all year groups to brainstorm on solutions for challenges confronting the school.
He appealed to all former students to reconnect and share their details with his office for a register that would soon be opened for all former students to register towards the homecoming.
The Tamale School of Hygiene is saddled with myriad of challenges that are impacting negatively on academic work and the safety of students. The school’s two-storey hostel building which currently accommodates about 270 students is a death-trap and needs urgent rehabilitation.
Apart from the fact that the hostel facility has developed deep cracks and leaks whenever it rains, there is also serious congestion in the cubicles and unbearable heat for students to contend with.
Another building in the school which has developed serious defects is the school’s dinning hall which also serves as auditorium for school events. The ceiling of the auditorium is rotting away due to constant leakages during the rainy season whereas most of the window nets and louvre blades are torn and broken.
Moreover, the school’s 25 seater Toyota coaster bus and a double cabin pickup are also grounded thereby making it impossible for students to go out for their field practical training.
Arguably Ghana’s premier hygiene and sanitation training institution, the Tamale School of Hygiene trains skilled manpower to handle hygiene and sanitation issues in all human environments.
The Tamale School of Hygiene currently lacks laboratory skills training, a requirement that is mandatory for all students doing certificate and diploma programmes.
Despite the availability of brand new laboratory equipment donated to the school by the Netherlands Government recently, there is no suitable space or designated laboratory facility to set up the equipment for training purposes.
By Savannahnewsonline.com/Philip Liebs
