Salaga: Students urge govt to release funds for feeding

Some students of the Salaga T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School in the East Gonja Municipality of the Savannah Region have appealed to the government for an urgent intervention to address food shortages and the delayed release of funds.

They are asking for this to ensure that academic activities are not disrupted as they returned to school on Friday, January 3, 2025.

The Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS) had appealed to the Ghana Education Service to delay the reopening of schools until funds were released to resolve the supply of food and financial issues but the GES insisted that schools should go ahead and reopen.

From the T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School in Salaga, there is an indication that only a few bags of rice and two gallons of cooking oil remain in stock, which is expected to last less than two weeks.

This has sparked anxiety among students, particularly final-year students preparing for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

“We’ve been informed by the school management that the available food can only last for a short time. If the government doesn’t intervene quickly, students will continue to suffer, and schools might even shut down,” one student told Graphic Online's Simon Unyan.

School authorities fearing the situation confirmed to Graphic Online that no funds had been disbursed in the accounts to address the crisis.

“We have just a few bags of rice and two gallons of cooking oil, which will not sustain us beyond two weeks if more students report. We are calling on the government to act swiftly,” a school official stated.

As of Friday afternoon, only about 20 students had reported to the school, according to Graphic Online’s Simon Unyan, who visited the campus. Both students and school authorities are urging the government to act promptly to avert further disruptions and ensure a smooth academic term.