Teshie,Ghana

Teshie-Estate Prep School - Electricity Project
Kwame Gyamfi, MTID

The Teshie Estate Preparatory School (TEPS) is located in the coastal and eastern region of Greater Accra, Ghana. The Late Nana Amponsah started the school due to the lack of educational opportunities for his own children. As an entrepreneur and respected elder, Nana Amponsah financed and built the school using finances and resources from his rubber and tire manufacturing business. The school eventually became a self-sustaining school that eventually provided educational opportunities to the Teshie-Nungua community.

In early 2005, I had the opportunity to implement an infrastructural development project. This project involved the participation of the staff, faculty and students in separate sessions called Focus Groups. The Focus Groups allowed the whole of the school community to decide what would be the best development projects for the TEPS School. The students felt very strongly that a Teachers Lounge and functional library were the best projects to support. The theory behind these ideas centered on the concept that happy teachers make the best educators. The staff selected a functional library. The teachers believed that they should get a pay raise.

Ultimately, it was decided to upgrade the electrical grid at the school and bring lights into the classrooms. The concept of this project involved the development of a night school for adult learners.