By Sheila WILLIAMS
The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, said the Government of Ghana has invested into the future of Ghanaian children with the introduction of the Free Senior High School, (SHS) programme and provided immediate cash benefits to parents saying “for a parent with a boarding SHS student, you save GH¢2,015.22 and a parent with a boarding TVET student you save GH¢2,115.22”.
The Finance Minister made this remarkable revelation when he delivered the 2019 Budget Statement in Accra.
“Over a three-year period a parent with a boarding SHS student would have saved nearly GH¢6,045. The savings is about GH¢120million old Cedis if you have two children going through the free SHS.
“We increased the school feeding programme from 1.6 million children to 2.1 million children, and also increased the amount spent on each child by 25 percent,” he added.
According to the minister, this is the first time Ghanaians are enjoying Free SHS with free meals (Both boarding and day), free boarding accommodation and free textbooks for students.
The Free SHS in 2017 provided over 90,000 additional teenagers an opportunity to get Senior High School education and improve their opportunities for work in the future.
“In 2018, as a result of the innovative double track system, we have been able to accommodate 181,000 more students who otherwise could not have access to secondary education,” he stated.
