The Principal Investigator and Director of the Centre for Education Research and Policy (LECERP), Dr. Clement Adamba, has affirmed that the newly launched African Regional Education System Resilience Observatory (ARESRO) will play a crucial role in strengthening education systems across West Africa.
The African Regional Education System Resilience Observatory (ARESRO) is a two-year research and policy initiative designed to help West African countries build stronger, more resilient education systems that can withstand shocks such as pandemics, natural disasters, or conflicts.
Speaking at the official launch of the ARESRO project at the Smart Classroom of the School of Continuing and Distance Education, University of Ghana, Dr. Adamba noted that the initiative will provide essential data and strategies to help countries in the sub-region build more resilient and inclusive education systems.
“This is not just about research. It’s about building resilience in real education systems. We want to assess how prepared we are, where the gaps are, and how to act before the next crisis hits,” he said.
Dr. Adamba also emphasized that the ARESRO initiative will serve as the central hub for data and insights to help West African countries build shock-ready systems.
“ARESRO is a one-stop shop for data on education system resilience. It’s about helping countries build shock-ready, inclusive systems that remain strong in uncertain times,” he added.
The ARESRO project will be implemented in three phases: context analysis, formative assessment, and foresight analysis. These phases will involve reviewing existing knowledge, engaging key stakeholders including teachers, parents, and policymakers and identifying potential future risks that could affect education systems.
Ghana will serve as the coordinating hub for the sub-region, overseeing activities across the five participating countries and leading both the formative and foresight phases. Although the core project will run for two years, its findings are expected to inform education policy decisions through 2027 and beyond.
ARESRO is one of six virtual observatories established globally by the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and is the only one based in Africa. Its continental headquarters is hosted at the Resilience Africa Network (RAN) in Uganda.
The launch event featured a presentation on Ghana’s initial findings from the context analysis phase. Participants were encouraged to actively engage in upcoming validation workshops, policy discussions, and local stakeholder forums.
Present at the launch were Mr. Apollonius O. Asare, Chief Program Officer at the Ghana Commission for UNESCO, and Mr. Kofi Akye, Program Officer for Education, along with other regional stakeholders who joined virtually.
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Story by Emmanuel Eugene Darkwah | univers.ug.edu.gh
Edited by Cindy Selasi Humade
