Wednesday, 2nd July, 2025
Hon Mavis Kuukua Bissue
Ahanta West
Mr Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to address this august House on the urgent need to preserve, revive and integrate the Ahanta language known as Ayinda into the formal education system. This is a matter of not only cultural heritage, but also educational equity, linguistic justice and constitutional fidelity.
Mr Speaker, like Ayinda, over 40 of Ghana’s indigenous languages are now at risk of extinction according to the language scholars. I am an example of the dangers that lie ahead if we fail as a country to document and teach our indigenous languages. Despite being born to an Ahanta father and mother; I did not have the benefit of being taught the language at home or in school. We had no books from which I could read my language, and travelling and living out of Ghana, more than 25 years of my life, I had no reference point to connect with my mother tongue.
Today, like thousands of Ahanta people, I am unable to speak the language. My children too have no means of learning it. As a Member of Parliament for Ahanta West, I am determined, as one of my legacies, to change this.
Mr Speaker, Ayinda is a Central Tano language within the Kwa branch of the Niger-Congo language family, spoken by the Ahanta people in the Western Region. It is similar to languages like Nzema, Brosa, Evalue and other languages that are spoken in the south-east Ivory Coast. For generations, this language has served as a medium of identity, oral history, governance and spirituality for the Ahanta people. Sadly, due to a longstanding marginalisation and the absence of state-led preservation efforts, the Ayinda language is now endangered, with fewer children speaking or understanding the ancestral tongue.
Mr Speaker, our Constitution under Article 39(3) mandates the State to ensure that the integration and development of Ghanaian languages are incorporated into national life. The Education Strategy Plan and numerous international conventions to which Ghana is a signatory, such as the African Union Language Plan of Action for Africa and UNESCO’s Convention on Cultural Diversity, all recognise the importance of preserving indigenous languages as vehicles for identity, development and inclusion.
Upon assuming office, I convened a Language Renaissance Committee, which brought together the chiefs of Ahanta; the Ahanta Bible Translation Project, which has already developed the orthography for the language, the Ghana Education Service, experienced language teachers, media and other stakeholders. This collaborative body has spearheaded the Ahanta Language Renaissance Project, a grassroot-driven initiative aimed at documenting, developing and teaching Ayinda in our schools.
Mr Speaker, with the support of the Ahanta West Municipal Education Service, we have successfully selected 20 public basic schools across the Ahanta West Municipality for a pilot programme. In preparation, over 20 volunteers, teachers, have undergone specialised training in both the orthography and teaching methodology of the language sponsored by my office. These teachers are now ready to start the Ayinda teaching in their respective schools as we work to gather data for broader curriculum integration.
Mr Speaker, I am proud to announce that on Friday, 4th July, 2025, there will be a grand durbar to officially launch the Ahanta Language Renaissance Project. This will be a historic and unifying occasion for the Ahanta people, educators and all who value linguistic and cultural heritage. Today, as I make this historic Statement on the floor of this august House, I have brought with me 25 pupils and their teachers from the schools where this pilot would be taking place. They are here with us in the public gallery.
Mr Speaker, with this project, we in Ahanta West are showing the way of other lesser-known languages. There are five constituencies that make up Ahanta area, including the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis, our original capital. By igniting the fire, we hope that we would spread the study of Ayinda across these areas in the future. This is not merely a cultural project; it is an educational one. Evidence from global educational research confirms that teaching children in their language significantly enhances literacy, comprehension and confidence. By enabling children in Ayinda speaking areas to learn their native language means closing gaps in access and quality that long disadvantaged rural and linguistically marginalised communities.
Moreover, this work directly supports Ghana's progress towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Goal four, which calls for inclusive and equitable quality education. It also affirms the cultural rights of minority language groups and demonstrates Ghana's leadership in safeguarding linguistic diversity across Africa.
In view of these facts, I respectfully call on the honourable House to support the following recommendations. The Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service officially recognise Ayinda as a Ghanaian language of study in Ahanta West Schools. The funding and technical support to be made available for the expansion and mainstreaming of the ongoing pilot programme. That the National Council of Curriculum and Assessment (NACA), collaborates with the Ahanta Bible Project to develop standardised and examinable materials for the Ayinda language.
Mr Speaker, our languages are living archives of our history, identity and dignity. If we allow Ayinda to disappear, we lose not only a language but a vital part of Ghana's national story. The people of Ahanta West ready to keep their language alive, with the support of this honourable House, we can make that vision a national reality.
Mr Speaker, I would end by saying, me la b’aasi — Nyamenle Y’ila abiaara. I thank you. God bless you
Hon Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah
Takoradi
Mr Speaker, I am very happy and delighted to contribute to this Statement made by Ms Bissue.
It is proper that the Ahanta language is recognised as part of the curriculum, especially for those in that part of Western Region that speak Ahanta. If we take Takoradi, Sekondi, Essikado, part of Shama, Kwesimintsim and Ahanta West, we can go on and on, even up to Cape Three Points. They are all part of the Ahanta-speaking areas of the Western Region.
Mr Speaker, if one does not have a language, naturally one’s culture will be lost. In fact, if we look at tribes in Ghana, we usually use language to characterise them. Unfortunately, it seems that the speaking of the Ahanta language is becoming a major problem in these areas. If we take a place like Takoradi and Sekondi, even in Amanfo, my own area, which have typical Ahanta migrants there, the Ahanta language, Ayinda is gone.
If we take parts of Kwesimintsim, they do well a little bit. If we take parts of Ahanta West, like Aponwe, Biahon, Agona Nkwanta, Dixcove, and the rest, they are doing well. But the main cities, like Shama, Sekondi, Essikado, Takoradi, Kansaworodo, and Anaji, we have virtually lost the language being spoken in these areas and I believe that the launch and the reintroduction of the language back into the system will do a bit of service for our people. Because when culture is the programming on the mind, with these symbols of the language, it will be easier for the people to understand their own systems and grow and develop out of ancient or local knowledge and to help grow the economy as well.
Mr Speaker, I support Hon MP for Ahanta West for such a great Statement in this House and I believe that Members of Parliament should support her so that when it gets to the ground, the Ministry of Education will be there to support them with the development of the language. I know that the former Western Regional Secretary of the NPP, Mr Quansah, started the language book. So, I believe that if we can contact the family also in Ahanta, it will help to start with some of the materials that will help work with them.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for the opportunity.
Hon Philip Fiifi Buckman
Kwesimintsim
Mr Speaker, I would want to also encourage and say to our Sister that she has done very well.
This is a very bold step that Ms Mavis Kukuaa Bissue has taken and I want to say that we are so grateful for that step.
Mr Speaker, as was said earlier, if one comes to the area where Ahanta language is spoken, in fact we have five major paramountcy. We are talking about Sekondi, Essikado, Ketan, Otumfo Bedu Bonsu, Bussia, Lower and Upper Dixcove where all these great paramount chiefs are and they cover a vast area.
In fact, because now the society is made up of mixed persons, especially within Sekondi-Takoradi, Kwesimintsim, Effia among others, the language is dying slowly. SoSo, with this bold step and a national, a constitutional, a cultural and a religious call for us to revive the Ahanta language, I think it is a step that we all need to support with all alacrity, with the strengths that we have, so that the Ahanta language would also survive and come up as one of the major languages that we speak and learn in our schools. Because if these children, especially those who have come here, lose track of their language, their spirituality is lost, their culture is lost and their religion is lost.
In fact, their tradition is lost and they may not be able to say where they are from and what language they speak. We congratulate our Sister for this bold step. In fact, may I humbly say that she can be termed as the queen of the Ahanta language.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
Hon Patricia Appiagyei
Asokwa
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. I would like to contribute by commending our Sister, the Hon Member for Ahanta West, Ms Mavis Kuukua Bissue, for making such an important Statement.
It is important because it is even being proposed at this point in time in our Parliament that we use our local language to communicate, so that the people who we represent will be able to understand whatever we are discussing here and whatever laws we are promulgating over here—These things will be allowed.
The Hon Member in making this Statement has made it imperative that it is about time we looked at the possibility of using our local language to educate and to give us a lot of wisdom and understanding in whatever we pursue. I agree with the recommendations our Sister made that this should be included in the curriculum. It is very important because of the number of districts and regions that are able to speak this particular language.
But in all, I see a very challenging issue for which, by listening to Hon Kwabena Darko, a lot of work has already been done. He actually recommended for the Hon Minister to contact the individual who has started work on that one. I believe that because of the expense involved in translating the current books into the various languages, it is important that at this critical stage of our development as a country, we begin to look at how we can assign the right funding to ensure that we use our local dialect.
Mr Speaker, reference is always made to China, that because they use their local language, they are able to do impossible things or they are able to advance, to innovate and also understand whatever they are doing. So, it is important that as a country, we rethink through our medium of expressing ourselves in whatever we do.
So, I commend the effort made by the Hon Member for suggesting the inclusion of the language in the curriculum, but more importantly, I want to say that it should be extended to most of the languages. There are other languages that we can classify and then make it—I know that we have a number of languages, but we can classify the languages and make it small enough for good implementation.
With these few words, I want to thank the maker of the Statement and highly commend her for this effort.
Hon Grace Ayensu-Danquah
Essikadu-Ketan
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to make a comment on the Statement given by Hon Kuukua Bissue from Ahanta West.
Mr Speaker, it is very important that we speak our local language and also be taught in our local languages. As we all know, tomorrow, the Prime Minister of India would be in this august House. He would be speaking in Hindi, which is his local language, and we will get the translation of what he is saying. I believe that he doing that is not necessarily for the Ghanaian audience, but for the audience in India who would be watching him; he wants them to understand.
When we speak in our local language and when we learn in our local language, it leads to better comprehension. And not only does it lead to better comprehension, it also helps with citizenry participation. Because if I can stand here and speak Ahanta, which is also my language — I see that the Ahanta language is disappearing — it would be very important and it will also empower the girls or the children in Ahanta land, so that they would also know that we have people in this House who are speaking their language.
So, Mr Speaker, I am very happy that this topic has come up. I believe that even with education—I also believe that Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, the current Vice President of Ghana, has been talking about this for a while. She has been talking about us teaching our children in local languages. I can use myself as an example, Mr Speaker. I have had so many years of education; I believe 17 years of postgraduate education.
But sometimes, when I am reading something, just to be able to comprehend it internally, I translate it into my language, so that I can really comprehend what I am reading. So, I am sure it would also change the exam scores in the country. It will make a huge difference that I do not think that it is calculable now; we cannot measure it now.
But once we start doing that, I truly believe that it will eventually show in our exam results. It will also show in the pride of Ghanaians. For those of us in this House, if we are also able to speak our languages here, I think it will lead to better open governance participation and buy-in of our constituents.
Mr Speaker, with these few words, I would like to say thank you to her for bringing up such an important topic
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