The Member of Parliament for Akrofuom in the Ashanti Region, Joseph Azumah, has called for an urgent review of the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy, proposing that children of Members of Parliament and government appointees be excluded from the programme.
According to him, such a move would help the government save funds to recruit more teachers, particularly at the basic school level.
Speaking on Adom TV’s Badwam programme, Mr Azumah acknowledged the importance of the Free SHS policy but expressed concern over its growing financial burden on the state. He noted that although the policy has strong political backing, its current cost structure could negatively impact other critical areas of the education sector.
“I believe the policy is good, but in its current form, it is putting significant pressure on the national budget, making it difficult to address other key needs in education,” he stated.
Mr Azumah further suggested that government appointees and MPs who earn above GH¢15,000 monthly should be made to pay for their children’s secondary education.
He added that many Ghanaian parents are capable of paying school fees and should be given the option to do so, rather than relying entirely on government support.
His comments come on the back of recent remarks by the Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, who revealed that financial constraints prevented the government from recruiting 50,000 teaching and non-teaching staff as earlier planned.
Mr Iddrisu explained that while there is a pressing need to expand the teaching workforce to improve education delivery, budgetary limitations have made it difficult to proceed with the recruitment.
He emphasised that the government has had to make tough decisions in managing limited resources, affecting multiple sectors, including education.
Despite the challenges, the Minister assured that addressing the teacher deficit remains a priority, stressing the need to create fiscal space for future recruitment.
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