Acting Director of the Bureau of Ghana Languages (BGL), Peter Essien, has said there are discussions to make Ghanaian language proficiency a requirement for access to tertiary education in Ghana.

He said the proposal is part of measures to ensure the protection of local dialects.

Mr Essien told Adom News that the Bureau has been given two weeks to draft a document that will be incorporated into a legislature to make Ghanaian Language compulsory from early school to Senior High School (SHS) and subsequently become a prerequisite for accessing tertiary education.

The idea was conceived during a consultative meeting of stakeholders on the observation of International Mother Tongue Day at the Bureau’s headquarters in Accra, he explained.

He has urged parents to teach their children local languages at home to preserve the cultural heritage and identity of Ghana.

Mr Essien believes that the development of a nation depends on the development of its local languages.

He said Ghana must not relegate her native languages to the background because many countries in Asia and Europe have developed with their own languages.

Multimedia’s Adom TV and FM were honoured by the BGL for their role in the promotion and preservation of Ghanaian languages during the occasion.