The President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Yaw Acheampong Boafo, has urged President Akufo-Addo and his government to reconsider the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy.
He proposed that, students from affluent families should pay fees.
This, the GBA President argued, would free up resources to better support students from underprivileged backgrounds.
Speaking at the 2024/2025 Annual General Conference of the Ghana Bar Association in Kumasi on Monday, September 9, Mr. Boafo acknowledged the Free SHS policy’s significant contribution to increasing educational access in Ghana.
However, he stressed the importance of financial fairness in the system.
He suggested that, the government focus on improving basic education and direct resources towards supporting students from disadvantaged families, rather than subsidizing secondary education for those who can afford it.
“The Free SHS programme should be means-tested, using data from the National Identification Authority, so that wealthy parents do not present themselves as peasant farmers, reminiscent of the days when we had the COCOBOD scholarship scheme. Students from well-to-do families who attended expensive basic schools should pay fees at the SHS level, allowing more resources to be directed towards the poor.
“Mr. President, we need to prioritize investment in public basic schools, eliminate ‘schools under trees,’ and provide sanitary pads for girls from poor families before committing extensive funds to secondary education.
As primary education is the foundation, it must come before secondary education.
Additionally, the recent findings from the Auditor General on the school feeding programme should prompt a review and improvement of its operations, particularly since its main beneficiaries are students from disadvantaged backgrounds.”
