An Economist Dr Peter Terkper has urged government to integrate the educational support for the children of the recent Ghana Air Force helicopter crash victims into the existing National Scholarship Scheme instead of creating a separate fund.
Speaking to ABC News GH on Wednesday, Dr Terkper argued that such a move would guarantee sustainability and prevent the initiative from being cancelled by future administrations.
“We have to… so that successive governments will not cancel it. Instead of creating a separate fund, we have to look at adding them to the National Scholarship funds,” he said.
Dr Terkper cautioned that similar tragedies could occur in the future, raising the question of whether government would be compelled to create new funds for each incident.
He stressed that the best long-term approach would be to incorporate all such cases into the National Scholarship Scheme to ensure consistency, avoid duplication, and reduce administrative burdens.
“The best solution is adding the children to the National Scholarship funds instead, to prevent future problems,” he stated.
His remarks follow President John Mahama’s announcement on Tuesday, August 12, 2025, of a dedicated fund for the children of the eight personnel who perished in the Ghana Air Force Z-9 helicopter crash on August 6.
The President revealed the initiative during the funeral rites of the late Deputy National Security Coordinator, Alhaji Mohammed Muniru Limuna, explaining that the details of the dedicated funds, will be announced at the state funeral on Friday, August 15.
The President assured that government will cater to the victims’ children, some as young as two months old, to safeguard their education and future.
