Fifteen girls from the Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions have been awarded scholarships of ¢3 million each for excelling in the 2006 Basic Certificate Examination. The Ghana Education Service and the World Food Programme (WFP) initiated the awards that included certificates, books and hampers. The head teachers and gender officers for the various subjects in which the students excelled also received various prizes to motivate them. Mrs. Veronica Jackson, National Activity Coordinator of the GES and the WFP said the awards formed part of efforts to bridge the gender disparity in the country. She said the scheme, which started over seven years now has been successful and indicated that enrolment of girls increased from 9,071 in 1998 to 46,105 in 2004/05 in both primary and junior secondary school. "98 per cent of enrolled girls in the three Northern regions achieved 85 per cent of attendance rate and received dry rations", Mrs. Jackson noted. She said that in 2004/05 Upper East and Upper West regions achieved gender parity index of 1.02 and 1.05 respectively, and said the success experienced by these two regions showed that the disparity was being bridged. Mr. Boniface Gambila, Upper East Regional Minister, commended the GES and the WFP for complementing the Government's efforts in promoting education. He appealed to traditional authorities, opinion leaders, community members and other stakeholders in education to contribute to the development of education. Source: GNA