Education Minister assures PWDs of free tertiary education
The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has reiterated the government’s commitment to promoting accessible and equitable education for all, in line with President John Dramani Mahama’s resetting agenda.
He said the ministry was gathering data on persons with disabilities (PWDs) through the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) to ensure effective implementation of the inclusive policy.
Mr Iddrisu made the call when the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations paid a courtesy call on him at the ministry to follow up on President Mahama’s campaign pledge to implement inclusive education policies and programmes that cater to the needs of students with disabilities.
Key highlights of their concerns include the provision of assistive technology to enhance learning for PWDs and the need to introduce sign language in basic schools, as pledged by President John Dramani Mahama.
Mr Iddrisu reassured members of the PWDs that they would be included in the free tertiary education policy through the Students Loan Trust Fund (SLTF).
He, therefore, called on them to get their members to register with the Students Loan Trust Fund (SLTF) to enable them to access funding for the free tertiary education policy.
Ministry’s commitment
He gave the assurance of the ministry’s unwavering commitment to addressing challenges faced by PWDs within the education sector.
“The best of John Dramani Mahama is ahead of us and not behind us. To measure John Dramani Mahama, let us measure him today and the future”, the minister admonished.
“The President will honour the spirit and letter of his pledge,” the minister gave an assurance.
The minister announced the formation of a committee to develop a road map for implementing the free tertiary education initiative for persons with disabilities.
“Accordingly, I am happy to announce that Mr John Atsu Homadzi and Honourable John Madzesi will represent you from the Federation together with one of your ladies to be nominated by you to work with Deputy Minister Dr Clement Apaak, and the Chief Executive of the Students Loan Trust, Dr Saajida Shiraz.”
“So, we have defined a road map; three of you to work with three of our representatives, so that we have a blueprint agreed upon by all of us for the implementation of the Free Tertiary Education Policy.
There is no walk back on the President’s pledge.”
“So just constitute your team,” Mr Iddrisu said, adding that the deputy minister would co-chair the committee with Homadzi.
For his part, the President of the Federation, Joseph Atsu Homadzie, commended the President for his commitment towards the welfare of persons with disabilities.
He appealed for the provision of accessible infrastructure and assistive devices to ensure quality education for PWDs.
