On May 27, the first PAMBE Ghana -supported school was inaugurated in Bumboazio in the East Mamprusi District. The occasion brought together strategic partners, collaborators, community leaders, traditional chiefs, and supporters of PAMBE Ghana. These included the District Chief Executive and Coordinating Director, Ghana Education Service, Health Directorate, the National Health Insurance Scheme, Information services and many heads of departments in the district as well as representatives of the Nayiri (the King of Mamprugu).

There were about 40 dignitaries and invited guests who came to the event. In addition, almost all the people of Bumboazio and Bantambaari and over twenty people from my native village, Bongbini, including the village chief and of course the children and their parents came to the event. We estimate between 200 and 250 people attended. The Northern Regional Minister was poised to come to give the keynote address but had to change his plans just the day before because it just happened that the President of Ghana, His Excellency, Prof. John Evans Atta Mills, was to stop in Tamale on his way to an adjacent region in the north on the day of the inauguration. As protocol has it, the Regional minister and his whole entourage had to be mobilised to welcome and accompany the President on his visit. Between the President of the Republic of Ghana and PAMBE Ghana, well, we know who takes precedence!

We were quite late in starting the programme (Ghanaian time). The drumming and dancing went much longer and, with the warmth from all the hearts at this merry-making and the heat from the hot sun, over 600 plastic sachets (generally called pure water) and 100 half-litre bottles of mineral water did not suffice. We had to supplement with gallons of ordinary water the women brought in from the village.

Due to weeks of planning and preparation by the various organizing committees of the Advisory Committee and a lot of behind the scenes work on the day itself, the inauguration event was a huge success. The size and diversity of the crowd was one never seen in the remote village of Bumboazio before, with so many dignitaries. There were three types of traditional drumming and dancing displayed by the people , punctuated by many speeches, including those of the District Chief Executive, representatives of the Nayiri (King of Mamprugu) and Board of Directors. After the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the District Chief Executive (the president’s representative at the district level) and his entourage went into the classroom to observe the students at work and learn a thing or two about the PAMBE Ghana approach. The children were really into their routine of learning as the visitors came through the classroom. [The children had their lunch and Mary and Issah, our two teachers and their assistant (Ibrahim) went into the classroom with them about an hour before]

The visitors were truly impressed! Many remarked on how the children remained calm and engaged in their work despite the crowd in the classroom. While we (teachers and I) presented a few exercises to some others watched the children and asked them questions about their work.