About Us
Background
GNECC is a network of about 200 civil society organizations working in the Education sector with branches in seven (7) old southern regions of the country. GNECC’s main goal is to promote quality pre-tertiary education for all children in Ghana through working with national, regional, district, and community-based stakeholders.
Vision
GNECC advocates for good quality, relevant and enjoyable basic education for all in Ghana irrespective of one’s age, income level, gender, physical or other disabilities, geographic location, ethnic or religious background, socio-economic background or differences.
Mission
To work at changing attitudes and practices and influencing policies of institutions (local, national and international, governments and intergovernmental bodies, donors) and the public, towards ensuring quality basic education for all through working with Civil Society Organizations and communities.
Objectives
- To work for the removal of barriers at local, national and international levels for the equitable access to good quality, relevant and enjoyable basic education for all
- To mobilize and harness adequate resources at local, national and international levels to meet the cost of good quality basic education for all
- To advocate for the appropriate allocation and utilization of public and private resources to ensure good quality, relevant and equitable basic education for all
- To advocate for democratic participation in the formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of local and national education policies, plans and the management of educational institutions in Ghana
- To influence national and international education policies and programmes to ensure access to good quality basic education for all.
The Organizational Structure
There is a General Assembly (GA) made up of all members of the coalition. Under the GA is a 15-member Executive Council (EC) with three core office bearers (the Chairman, Vice-chair and Treasurer), a representative of the Ghana Federation of the Disabled and representatives from each of the regional branches. Below the EC is the national secretariat followed by regional branches. Next in the hierarchy are the District Education For All Teams (DEFATs) which are district advocacy teams in the districts. The regional branches and DEFATs have vast experience in data collection, monitoring policy implementation, community stakeholder training, and local level advocacy.
Membership Profile
GNECC is a network of over 200 civil society organizations working in the Education sector. It is headquartered in the capital of Ghana Accra, with branches in all eleven (11) southern regions of the country. Northern Network for Educational Development (NNED) is the chapter that takes care of the three northern regions – Northern, Upper East, and Upper West.
GNECC has also established district advocacy teams in the districts known as “District Education for All Teams (DEFATs)” across the regions. The regional branches and DEFATs have vast experience in data collection, monitoring policy implementation, community stakeholder training, and local-level advocacy in the districts and communities. GNECC’s main goal is to promote quality basic and second-cycle education for all in Ghana. It does this by working with national, regional, district, and community-based stakeholders.
Scope of Work
The coalition’s interventions are targeted at working for the removal of barriers at local, national and international levels to enhance equitable access; mobilizing and harnessing adequate resources at local, national and international levels to meet cost of education; advocating the appropriate allocation and utilization of public and private resources, democratic participation in the formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of local and national education policies and plans and the management of educational institutions in Ghana, and influencing international educational policies and programs, all in an effort to ensure good quality, relevant and enjoyable pre-tertiary education for all.
Strategies
The strategies employed include evidence-based advocacy, research and documentation, capacity building, networking and coalition building, and policy analysis and engagement.
Main Activities
Conducting research in various fields of education with the view to providing empirical data to inform policy formulation and decision-making in education.
Strengthening the advocacy skills and knowledge of community members and other key actors in education in our operational areas.
Engages in campaigning/advocating and where possible, facilitating access to education by special interest groups such as girls, children, persons with disabilities and youth in difficult circumstances.
Promoting quality education through Media and community sensitization/education programs to promote quality pre-tertiary education for every child including children with disabilities.
Monitoring educational resources for efficient service deliver.
Specific Accomplishments
The Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition (GNECC) has maintained its role as the lead Civil Society mouthpiece on education in Ghana. It is a member of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE) and the Africa Network Campaign Education for All. The organization has embarked on various projects, some in partnership and in collaboration with other organizations. The following are some of its specific accomplishments:
GNECC participated in the development of the Inclusive Education (IE) Policy and Minimum Standards and Guidelines by the Special Education Division of the Ghana Education Service which was duly launched and adopted by the Ministry of Education in May, 2016
GNECC is currently implementing a project intervention to respond to the impact of covid-19 pandemic on education. This project is complementing the effort of government to roll out E-learning program for school children whilst at home by converting the learning content into accessible formats for children with special education needs.
From 2017 to 2019, GNECC implemented a project to advance the right to education for children with disabilities in Ghana.
GNECC successfully contributed to the campaign for fee free education at the basic level in Ghana.
GNECC has successfully built the capacities of selected grassroots advocates known as “District Education for All Teams” (DEFATs) on educational resource tracking including the capitation grant and the school feeding program across the country. DEFATs are GNECC’s local structures in the districts which are used to collect data and to enhance grassroots campaign and advocacy towards quality basic education for all.
GNECC has successfully hosted the national platform for the Global Action Week (GAW) celebration on education in Ghana.
GNECC has created the largest Education Platform in Ghana and has successfully decentralized to the regions and districts in Ghana.
Organization of media engagement programs on emerging educational issues in Ghana.
Policy Participation
GNECC serves on the Project Steering Committee (PSC) of the Ghana Partnership of Education Grant (GPEG); represents civil society on the Ministry’s Technical Working Group on decentralization set up to carry out preparatory work to feed into the national decentralization program; is a member of the committee/team that developed the draft Inclusive Education and represented on the National Steering Committee for the implementation of Inclusive Education
Policy in Ghana. GNECC also represents civil society at the Development Partners working group and represented on the Ministerial Advisory Board of the Ministry of Education in Ghana.
Research
- The coalition has researched into the following:
- Disbursement and utilization of Ghana Partnership for Education Grants (GPEG),
- Education Privatization, Teacher Gaps in Public basic schools in Ghana,
- Gender-based violence in schools, state of implementation of the education decentralization policy,
- Distribution and utilization of education resources,
- Out of school conditions and the impact of Rural Urban Divide on Quality Basic Education in Ghana,
- Snap Shot research under the USAID Learning project,
- Research on teacher deployment and quality basic education in Ghana,
- Research on why schools scored zero percent in the 2006 Basic Education Certificate Examination in Ghana,
- Tracking of Capitation Grant in schools in Ghana, Research on school feeding program.
Currently, the Coalition is in partnership with the Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (IEPA) of the University of Cape Coast to undertake research on topical issues within the education landscape. There is an ongoing research through this partnership dubbed:
“A follow – up research on the learning conditions (student-teacher ratio, classrooms, TLM etc.) of first batch of students under the free SHS policy”.
Policy Influence
Since 2013 GNECC has embarked on advocacy on Education Decentralization implementation. The message on the policy has reached more people and government has developed a draft Education Bill (a consolidation of Acts 506 and 778) which is a remarkable milestone in the implementation process. GNECC’s research into teacher gaps in public basic schools in Ghana in 2013 and advocacy on improvement in teacher deployment in rural/deprived areas has contributed in MOE’s teacher rationalization exercise. GNECC also participated in the development of the National Inclusive Education Action Plan that was spearheaded by UNICEF in 2014. In addition, the coalition participated in developing Ghana’s Reading Action Plan in Kigali and the policy on complementary basic education, both of which have been adopted by government. Furthermore, GNECC’s advocacy contributed to the 50% increase in capitation grant in all public schools in Ghana in 2009.
Community Advocacy
GNECC has extensive experience in community advocacy. It mostly uses the Community Dialogue approach to empower communities to assess their needs, challenges, resources and strengths and develop action plans to help address issues and improve their living. The community engagements are led by our district-based structures, i.e. DEFATs, supported by the regional branches. This approach is effective as it allows different interest groups to participate in problem analysis, decision making, planning and implementation, and also ensures local ownership of interventions right from the beginning thereby ensuring sustainability. Community dialogues have also yielded valuable information and findings for evidence-based advocacy with policy makers and implementers.