Govt will improve, sustain free SHS — Dr Ato Forson

The government is committed to making the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) a definite source of funding for the free senior high school (SHS) programme, the Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, has said.

That, he said, was to improve upon the programme and make it sustainable.

To that end, he said the GETFund would receive GH¢ 9 billion cedis this year for its operations.

That, he explained, included arrears in allocation over the last several years and what it was expected to receive this year.

Speech day

Dr Forson was speaking at the 66th anniversary Speech and Prize Giving Day of the Swedru Senior School in the Central Region.

It was on the theme: "Sixty-six years of transforming lives, the impact of educational policies.”

Dr Forson said the government appreciated the immense role of funding in quality education and was also working to ensure funds were allocated from the GETFund to sustainably finance the free SHS, adding that the free SHS programme had come to stay.

Dr Forson said the government’s intervention would ensure more quality meals and funding to effectively manage the SHSs now and into the future.

He said the government was not only committed to ensuring that free senior high school was maintained but that it was sustained and improved.

He indicated the two main challenges with the free SHS programme were its sustainability and quality, adding that the government would work to amend the GETFund Act to ensure it specifically earmarked funds for financing the free SHS programme.

Dr Forson said that was to ensure sustainability and improvement in the quality of the programme and that the government was committed to ensuring that there was a definite source of funding for the programme.

He said he would liaise with the GETFund to support the completion of a block of teachers' flats being constructed for the school and also to personally support with the completion and furnishing of a new infirmary for the school.

Lasting effect

Mr Forson urged the students to study hard and work towards a brighter future.

The guest speaker, Professor Festus Annor-Frimpong from the University of Cape Coast, said many reforms had targeted access and quality in education.

He said the various polices had had a lasting effect on the educational landscape towards the march for development and called for efficient commitment from all stakeholders to help achieve the country's educational policy goals.

The headmistress of the school, Golda Esi Andam, said discipline had improved in the school, impacting academic performance positively.  

She appealed for support to set up laboratories including agriculture, languages and to improve the chemistry and physics laboratories.

The President of the alumni association, Samuel Atta Mensah, handed over a four flats teachers bungalow constructed by the old students to the management of the school.

SWESCO has 4,208 students with 269 staff.