The government has reaffirmed its commitment to improving education by increasing the education budget and significant budgetary allocations to key programs.
Presenting the 2025 Budget in Parliament on Wednesday, March 11, 2025, Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson outlined various initiatives aimed at enhancing the accessibility, quality, and affordability of education across the country.
“Mr. Speaker, an amount of GH₵499.8 million has been allocated for the No-Academic-Fee policy for all first-year students in public tertiary institutions under the ‘No-Fees-Stress’ initiative’.”
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson
This initiative is expected to ease the financial burden on students and their families, ensuring that higher education remains accessible to all qualified individuals.
In a move to promote gender equality in education, the Finance Minister also disclosed a budgetary allocation of GH₵292.4 million aimed at addressing menstrual hygiene issues for female students.
This initiative seeks to ensure that menstruation does not hinder the education of young girls, particularly those in underprivileged communities.
Dr. Forson acknowledged concerns about the sustainability of the Free Senior High School (SHS) program and announced a significant policy shift regarding the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund).
He highlighted that the key challenges facing the initiative have been issues of quality and the lack of a dedicated funding source.
Forson indicated that to address this, President John Mahama has taken decisive action by removing the cap on GETFund, ensuring a more stable financial foundation for the program. “This makes available dedicated funds for the full financing of free secondary education and free tertiary education for Persons with Disability (PWDs).”
Consequently, the government will amend the Capping and Realignment Act to uncap GETFund and revise the GETFund Act to ensure full funding for Free SHS.
“Mr. Speaker, this year the budget for the free secondary education program is GH₵3.5 billion. By uncapping the GETFund, we will be making available an additional GH₵4.1 billion to the GETFund, specifically for the financing of the free secondary education program and other related expenditures.”
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson
To further support GETFund, the government has absorbed the debt service obligations from the Daakye bond GETFund contracted, covering both interest and principal payments.
Investment in Textbooks and School Infrastructure
Furthermore, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson highlighted the government’s commitment to improving access to learning materials in schools by allocating GH₵564.6 million for the comprehensive distribution of curricula-based textbooks.
This funding will provide four sets of kindergarten books and workbooks for approximately 2.8 million learners, four sets of primary school textbooks for 800,000 learners, and nine sets of Junior High School (JHS) 3 textbooks for 540,000 students.
This initiative aims to bridge the gap in educational resources and enhance learning outcomes across all levels.
“Under the School Feeding Programme, budgetary provision has been increased from GH₵1.344 billion to GH₵1.788 billion in 2025, representing a 33% increase.”
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson
The budgetary boost will also increase the feeding cost per meal per child from GH₵1.50 to GH₵2.00 per day, marking a 33.3% rise.
This is expected to improve the quality and quantity of meals served to schoolchildren under the program.
To enhance basic education, the government has substantially increased funding for the Capitation Grant.
The allocation has risen to GH₵145.5 million, marking a 73.2% increase from the GH₵84 million provided in 2024.
Dr. Forson stressed that this boost in funding is intended to equip schools with the necessary operational resources, ensuring they can effectively deliver quality education.
“The government has also allocated GH₵203 million for the payment of the Teacher Trainee allowances and another GH₵480 million for Nursing Trainee allowances.”
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson
This is aimed at ensuring that student-teachers and nursing trainees receive the necessary financial assistance to complete their studies without undue hardship.
The government’s 2025 budget signals a strong commitment to improving education across all levels.
From addressing financial barriers for tertiary students to ensuring the sustainability of the Free SHS program, the budget outlines a clear roadmap for strengthening Ghana’s education sector.
By increasing funding for textbooks, school feeding, and capitation grants, and by rolling out strategic interventions like the free sanitary pads initiative, the government aims to create a more inclusive and effective learning environment.
As these measures take effect, their impact on educational outcomes and national development will be closely monitored.
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