Free SHS: Review of Government’s Flagship Programme Begins To Streamline Expenditure

• Finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta has disclosed that the free SHS and other government social intervention programmes were under review
• According to a report attributed to the Daily Graphic, the finance minister explained that the planting for food and jobs, one district one factory and the school feeding programme are all under review
• The World Bank is leading the review process to bring some new perspectives on the assessment of the programmes

The government has started a review of the president Nana Akufo-Addo’s most-cherished free SHS programme amid the current economic hardship and poor financial situation of the country.

But the flagship education policy of the current administration is not the only programme under review.

The issues-fraught School Feeding Programme, the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative, the controversial One district, One factory (1D1F) initiative and the Agenda 111 are all being reviewed.

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According to a report attributed to state-owned Daily Graphic, the finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta disclosed the ongoing review processes last Wednesday, December 14, 2022.

The report explained that the review exercise is led by the World Bank to enable proper assessment of the effectiveness and cost implications of all government’s social intervention programmes.

The minister also explained that the World Bank is leading the review exercise to bring some fresh perspectives on the way forward for the policies.

Ken Ofori-Atta said after implementing the various programmes for about six years, it was only proper that a comprehensive assessment of how they had performed, the cost and results of each initiative were undertaken to inform the next line of action.

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But timing of the review process is curious and could well be an admission that social intervention programmes, particularly, the free SHS was costing the state a bit too much than it could handle.

Government has secured a $3 billion bailout programme with the IMF as the country struggles to pay its suffocating domestic and foreign debts.

GES 'Not Reviewing Free SHS' to Determine How Much Parents Can Pay

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported in July 2022 that there was a huge uproar when earlier reports suggested that there was a plan to review the free SHS project to determine how much parents can pay.

Government denied the story that was first attributed to then-Director General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Prof Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa.

Prof Opoku-Amankwa refuted the reports that the GES was reviewing the education policy, insisting that he had been misconstrued.

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Source: YEN.com.gh