The Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs) have been urged to intensify public education and sensitization on the government's social intervention programmes and educational opportunities for people in the rural areas.

Mr Ernest Yaw Awuah Apreku, a Charted Accountant and Finance Officer at the Accra Technical University, said the move would motivate residents in the rural communities to know the importance of the various interventions programmes and the benefits aside from the Free Senior High School (FSHS) programme.

He was speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) after an orientation programme organised by the Board and Management of the Twene Amanfo SH/Technical School (TASTECH) for first-year students.

Mr Apreku, an old student of TASTECH, said despite the government's FSHS programme, some parents and guardians in the rural areas were unable to enrol their children because of poverty.

He said the MDAs must educate the public about the existence of government scholarships and other learning opportunities at the Assemblies for brilliant but needy students.

Mr Apreku, therefore, urged the media to give the Municipal/District Chief Executives (MDCEs) the platform to tell and explain to the public the opportunities available for students.

He appealed to the government to still roll out more social support programs for actual needy students, saying, "there are families who are in difficult living conditions that they cannot even buy uniforms, footwear and other necessities for their wards".