[ 2017-11-20 ]

Funding for Free SHS not a problem -Assibey Yeboah
Funding for government’s flagship education
programme – Free SHS – is not a big deal as
all necessary steps have been taken to ensure the
sustainability of the policy, a member of the
government’s economic management team has
assured.

The implementation of Free SHS has been
overwhelmed by claims of insufficient funding,
inadequate infrastructure to accommodate students,
delays in releases of funds, and food delays by
the Buffer stock company.

The Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary
Schools (CHASS), has cautioned that Senior High
Schools in the country risk closure if government
fails to immediately release subsidies which have
been in arrears for three terms.


However,  Speaking to Ultimate News at the
Sidelines of 2018 post Budget Workshop for Members
of Parliament which ended Monday in Koforidua, Dr.
Mark Assibey Yeboah, the Member of Parliament for
New Juaben South constituency, who is also a
member of the Economic Management team of
government said, funding for the programme is not
 a problem for government considering the budget
allocation and commitment of the President.

“GHC1.3billion is allocated to the Free SHS
Programme if we didn’t have Free SHS this GHC1.3
billion would have been free money for you. So as
for funding, it is not a problem but as we go
along, the budget allocation to Free SHS is going
to grow. So if we have moved from GHc400 million
to GHC1.3 billion this year, maybe by next we will
reach about GHC3 billion,” he said.

He added that: “The budgetary allocation to
Ministry of Education alone without Free SHS is
about GHC8billion so you add Free SHS then it
means education alone has taken the huge chunk. So
as for funding it, it is not a problem, it is
government’s priority programme, the President
is committed to it so we are going full speed
ahead”.

Dr.Mark Assibey Yeboah also explained that the
Voluntary Fund created for the programme is to
channel scholarship programmes and other
institutional and individual funding of Education
programmes into a common fund.

Source - ultimatefmonline.com

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