The Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) and the Institute for Education Studies (IFEST-Ghana) have formally petitioned the Ministry of Education and Parliament to halt the Ghana Education Trust Fund’s (GETFund) plans to award foreign masters scholarships.
The education-focused and advocacy groups argued that such allocations contravene the GETFund Act, 2000 (Act 581), which stipulates the fund’s role in supporting local education, not administering scholarships directly for studies abroad.
The group specifically asserted that Section 2(2b) of the GETFund Act mandates the fund to provide supplementary funding to the Scholarship Secretariat, supporting brilliant but needy students in the second cycle and accredited tertiary institutions in Ghana, hence any expenditure on foreign scholarships would be illegal and outside the scope of GETFund legal framework.
“In March 2024, Parliament approved a GHC 3.9 billion allocation to GETFund, based on a specific distribution formula which did not include GETFund Scholarships. Plans by GETFund to spend directly on Foreign Scholarships in 2024/25 are therefore outside the approved expenditure items in the 2024 GETFund Formula approved by Parliament, and thus, illegal”.
Eduwatch and IFEST
Financial Barriers and Enrollment Issues
Furthermore, the Africa Education Watch and the Institute for Education Studies indicated that the push for foreign scholarships comes at a time when Ghana faces significant challenges in tertiary education enrollment.
The group noted that despite the government’s aim to achieve a 40% Gross Tertiary Enrollment (GTE) rate by 2030, the current GTE stands at only 19.202% with a notable increase in the pass rates of core subjects in the WASSCE exams.
The group therefore posited that financial barriers are a primary obstacle to higher education access in the country, requiring the need for government to pay critical attention to it if it truly aims to achieve a 40% Gross Tertiary Enrollment (GTE) rate by 2030.
The group further noted that the underfunding of the Student Loan Scheme has exacerbated the current situation causing some students to either drop out of tertiary education or engage in menial jobs to survive.
“The average student loan amount of GHC 2,250 a year cannot cover the cost of funding tertiary education in Ghana for just the first month of study, let alone the entire year. This, compared to the average cost of a One-Year foreign Master’s Scholarship (GHC 400,000), makes it unconscionable for GETFund to even conceive the idea of awarding foreign Masters Scholarships in Ghana today”.
Eduwatch and IFEST
Cost Implications and Value for Money
Moreover, Eduwatch and IFEST highlighted the financial imprudence of foreign scholarships, noting that over 95% of the programs pursued abroad are available in Ghana at a fraction of the cost.
The education think-tank groups strongly asserted that this does not represent value for money, especially in the current economic climate marked by fiscal constraints and the need for prioritized spending.
Unprioritised Spending and Structural Reforms
In a fervent call for efficient spending and structural reforms, the group argued that given Ghana’s economic difficulties, characterized by expenditure cuts and increased taxation, the decision to fund foreign scholarships is seen as wasteful.
With over 5,000 basic schools in need of infrastructure improvements, Eduwatch and IFEST stated that the allocation of resources to foreign scholarships is deemed imprudent and misaligned with the country’s educational priorities.
Referencing the 2019 GETFund Performance Audit Report, the group underscored the need for structural reforms, criticizing the fund for acting beyond its mandate by administering scholarships directly.
They urged the Ghana Education Trust Fund to adhere to the Auditor-General’s recommendation that instructed the fund to channel funds through the Scholarship Secretariat, a recommendation the group noted has been upheld since 2020.
“The Auditor-General recommended that GETFund abides by Section 2(2b) of the GETFund Act, desist from administering foreign scholarships, and rather transfer funds to the Scholarship Secretariat for the administration of scholarships.
“We appreciate that the Scholarships Secretariat and the public scholarship system have severe transparency and accountability deficits. However, Eduwatch and IFEST will continue to work with the government to pursue a legal and institutional reform to improve transparency, accountability and effectiveness, as outlined in Eduwatch’s 9th April 2024 Call for Scholarships Reform”.
Eduwatch and IFEST
Demands and Future Commitments
In their petition, Eduwatch and IFEST made some key demands including urging the Minister for Education to immediately instruct GETFund to cease the foreign scholarship application process.
They also called on Parliament to prevent GETFund from allocating funds to foreign scholarships, citing unapproved and wasteful expenditure in addition to call on all presidential candidates in the upcoming elections to express commitment to reform the public scholarship system, ensuring it is merit-based, transparent, and sustainable.
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