Sunyani: President John Dramani Mahama has requested a policy shift for the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) to finance all expenditure related to the Free Senior High School (FSHS) programme, Mr. Haruna Iddrisu, the Minister of Education, has said. He mentioned that although this shift might affect the traditional core mandate of GETFUND, it is necessary to sustain the FSHS programme.

According to Ghana News Agency, the government is allocating close to GHC5 billion this year to finance the FSHS programme and expects to maintain this average until 2026. Mr. Iddrisu revealed these details during the opening session of the 63rd Annual Conference of the Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS) in Sunyani. He emphasized that this effort ensures the political and financial adequacy of the FSHS programme.

The conference, themed ‘Ensuring Comprehensive, Equitable, and Sustainable Secondary Education in Ghana-the Role of Stakeholders,’ also served as a platform for Mr. Iddrisu to announce a GHC300 million allocation aimed at ending the double-track system in Senior High Schools by 2026. This funding is intended for infrastructure development to bridge existing gaps and ensure equity across ‘A’, ‘B’, and ‘C’ category schools.

Mr. Iddrisu expressed concerns about the equity challenge posed by the categorization of schools, noting that a significant percentage of candidates prefer category A schools. He highlighted that this year alone, he received about 60,000 requests for protocols from various stakeholders. Despite reluctance towards the term ‘protocol,’ there remains a high demand for it.

Moreover, Mr. Iddrisu reiterated the government’s commitment to providing holistic education that includes moral, social, and inclusive quality education. He also announced plans for a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of 16 standard libraries across the nation in the first quarter of 2026, with budgetary allocations being prepared by the Ministry of Local Government.

Regarding the conference, Mr. Iddrisu stated that all educational institutions under CHASS would transition to post-paid electricity meters from January 2026 to address issues of intermittent power outages. As a gesture of support, he presented GHC200,000 on behalf of the government to aid the conference.