The government has officially approved the orthography of the Ahanta language (Ayinda) to be included in the country’s educational curriculum. This significant development marks a milestone in Ghana’s cultural and educational history.
Hon. Mavis Kuukua Bissue, the Member of Parliament for Ahanta West, announced this important news during a press briefing on Thursday, January 22. She emphasized that the approval represents a crucial step forward for the cultural and educational journey of the Ahanta people and Ghana as a whole.
At the launch event held at the Bureau of Ghanaian Languages in Accra, Hon. Bissue recalled how she raised the issue in Parliament on June 2, 2025, urging the government to integrate endangered Ghanaian languages, including Ayinda, into the national curriculum. “Today, that call has become a reality,” she stated, describing the approval as the fulfillment of a commitment she made to the people of Ahanta West.
Also read: Focus on critical leadership qualities – Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu warns NPP delegates ahead 2026 primary
The MP stressed the urgent need for intervention, warning that Ayinda faced a genuine risk of extinction due to decades of linguistic neglect and the lack of formal documentation. Referring to a UNESCO report from 1953, she noted that children learn more effectively when taught in their mother tongue, underscoring the inclusion of Ayinda as both an educational and cultural necessity.
“To lose Ayinda would not only mean losing a means of communication; it would signify the loss of our cultural memory and identity as a people,” she emphasized.
Hon. Bissue revealed that despite being born to Ahanta parents, she cannot speak Ayinda fluently due to the absence of formal learning opportunities. She explained that this personal experience strengthened her resolve to ensure that future generations of Ahantas would not suffer the same fate.
Ayinda is classified as a Central Tano language within the Kwa branch of the Niger-Congo language family and is closely related to languages spoken in south-eastern Côte d’Ivoire.
Beyond linguistics, Hon. Bissue stressed that the Ahanta language embodies identity, governance systems, moral values, folklore, chieftaincy traditions, and spirituality.
The approval of the Ayinda orthography clears the way for teacher training, curriculum development, academic research, and employment creation, formally adding the language to Ghana’s family of examinable local languages.
She expressed gratitude to President John Dramani Mahama, Vice President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts Abla Dzifa Gomashie, as well as the chiefs and queen mothers of Ahanta land, for their support.
Hon. Bissue paid tribute to Dr. Komenla Ntumy, Mr. Francis Barnasko Dadzie, GILLBT, the Bureau of Ghana Languages, the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), and the Ahanta Renaissance Project for decades of work that led to the approval.
The Executive Director of the Bureau of Ghana Languages (BGL), Mr. Ebenezer Ahiator, described the approval as a major milestone in Ghana’s efforts to preserve and promote indigenous languages.
According to him, the endorsement of the Ahanta language orthography marks a significant achievement in the Bureau’s mission to develop and standardise the written forms of Ghanaian languages.
Paying tribute to the MP, Mr. Ahiator added, “If you know what went into this achievement, her name will be written in golden letters in the history of Ahanta and Ghana as a whole.”
He noted that the development aligns with President Mahama’s Reset Agenda, stressing that cultural renewal is inseparable from economic transformation.
“We are not only resetting the economy; our languages are also part of the reset,” he said, urging the media to amplify the achievement nationwide.
Also speaking at the event, Professor Alhassan Samuel Issah of the University of Education, Winneba, described the approval as a serious movement for cultural empowerment.
Professor Issah announced that UEW has already developed and submitted course structures from Level 100 to Level 400, with the programme uploaded for implementation.
This paves the way for the Ahanta language to be studied at the degree level, ensuring a steady pipeline of trained teachers and researchers.
He disclosed that Hon. Bissue has identified potential candidates for PhDs in linguistics and Ghanaian languages, assuring them of full institutional support from UEW.
The Paramount Chief of Lower Dixcove, Nana Kwesi Agyeman IV, described the moment as emotional and historic, recalling fears that Ayinda was nearing extinction.
Some, he said, had predicted that the Ayinda language would disappear within the next 10 to 15 years, but by the grace of God and through the efforts of the Honourable MP, the language will survive.
He praised Hon. Bissue’s leadership and urged Ahantas in the diaspora to support the next phase financially and technically.