Why pay the fees of everybody?, Austin Gamey quizzes
We are in a vulnerable situation, Labour expert
Labour Expert, Austin Gamey, has called on government to review one of its flagship programmes - Free SHS.
In his view, the Free SHS should only target the poor and give room for the middle class to settle their wards fees.
Speaking on Asaase radio, Austin Gamey said, amidst the current economic woes, it's prudent for government to target people in the poverty-stricken bracket to settle their fees.
“We are in a vulnerable situation...So, should we continue with the Free Senior High School [education] the way it is, should we not target it, and let people who are in the middle class or so be able to pay for their children's school fees,” he stated.
“Why do we have to pay for everybody,” he asked. “Somebody who is in the poverty bracket which we have data on should be targeted and government pay for them,” the labour expert added.
The Free SHS policy was implemented in 2017 and it aims to take out the element of cost as a barrier to education.
The introduction of this policy has increased average enrolment in SHSs from about 800,000 in 2015 to 1.2 million in 2021, with the double-track system.
The Free SHS programme, since its inception, has been financed from the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) of petroleum revenues and the general government coffers/Consolidated Fund.
However, the policy has been bedevilled by financial challenges and delays in the supply of food to schools.
ESA/WA
Labour expert, Austin Gamey