By: Rachel Kakraba
The Ghana Publishers Association has reiterated the need for Ghana to have a national publishing strategy which is aligned with educational reforms and youth development. Such policies, it says, must be data driven, user friendly and offers direction, incentives and global relevance to propel national development.
Speaking at the 49th Annual General Meeting in Accra, president of the Association, Asare Konadu Yamoah, noted this must bring into line policies that ensures children have access to culturally relevant books which can model the lives of children.
“Let us fashion policies that ensure every child has access to culturally relevant books, books that model empathy, respect, and non-violent communication. Let us build an ecosystem where publishing is not just a profession, but a national mission”
He added “National development is not only measured in GDP, it is reflected in the dignity of our discourse, the depth of our education. And the pride we take in our identity in all this publishing is central to the vision that we envisaged”
Mr. Yamoah, mentioned the need for strengthening and sustaining public-private partnerships in textbooks development, youth programming and cultural preservation
“Government must drive policies that encourage direct investment in publishing and align curriculum development with inclusive innovation, enriching education, empowering young minds and safeguarding Ghana’s cultural heritage.
“Transforming of the publishing industry must be collaborative. It demands synergy between government, publishers, educators, civil society, and the other private sector institutions” he added.
He expressed concerns that despite its contributions, the sector remains under-recognized, under-resourced and underleveraged calling for a policy change in making the industry a catalyst for accelerating innovation, inclusion and impact.
Professor Yaw Nyadu Offei, Audiologist, University of Education, Winneba, and the chairman of the occasion, underscored the relevance of the publishing sector which he said goes beyond producing books.
“It’s about shaping minds, preserving culture, fueling education, fueling research with the ultimate aim to power national development”
Speaking on the theme, “policy as a catalyst transforming Ghana’s ecosystem for national development, Prof. Offei, said policies are instruments of transformation which could empower local initiatives, strengthening intellectual property rights, improving access to knowledge, and improving access to learning materials.
“Let’s build partnerships, and let’s advocate for forward thinking policies that will eventually convert our publishing ecosystem into a true pillar of national development”
He also called for intentional policies which he said are critical engines to driving creativity, innovation, and sustainability in publishing.
A Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Sir Dennis Dominic Adjei, said policy formulation must be geared towards improving the local publishing industry.
“Several policies are required to be introduced or implemented to improve upon the publishing industry in Ghana, and the prominent among them include local printing policy to protect the local industries from competing with others in the printing of textbooks”
He recommended that the government promote national book policy by committing its agencies to purchase books or publications from local authors or publishers.
Justice also called for capacity building for local industries to improve the quality of products to compete with foreign industries.
