President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has addressed growing calls for the Free Senior High School (FSHS) policy to be revised, suggesting that families who can afford private school fees should consider enrolling their wards in private institutions.
His remarks come in response to concerns raised about the financial burden the policy places on Ghana’s national budget.
The President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Yaw Acheampong Boafo, had earlier urged the government to reconsider the Free SHS policy, proposing that affluent families pay fees to allow more resources to be directed towards less privileged students.
Speaking at the 2024/2025 Annual General Conference of the GBA in Kumasi, President Akufo-Addo defended the policy, emphasizing that public schools, funded by taxpayers, must remain free for all, especially for those unable to afford secondary education. He maintained that the policy’s core objective is to ensure access to quality education for every Ghanaian child, regardless of economic background.
“People who can afford to pay fees for the education of their wards should send them to fee-paying private schools. Public schools that are funded by the taxpayer should be free to all who will otherwise be unable to pay for their education.
“That is why the number of pupils who have access to secondary education has doubled since the introduction of the free senior high school policy.”
“Over 5.7 million persons have benefitted from the policy since its inception. The following impact of this dramatic development will be felt in due course and will far outweigh the small number of privileged parents who can afford to pay for the education of their wards,” President Akufo-Addo stated.
