President Akufo-Addo with some of the students of Oda SHS
The President Akufo-Addo says the increasing numbers of Ghanaian children who have gained access to senior high schools across the country since 2017 is evident of the fact that the free senior high school (SHS) policy is working.
President Akufo-Addo made this known on Friday when he visited the Oda Senior High School on the second day of his three-day tour of the Eastern Region.
Addressing the students, the President stated that “I am happy to see from the breakdown given by the headmaster that the free SHS is, indeed, working. More and more students are entering secondary schools than before . . . You are the clear evidence that it is working. I am very happy about it.”
Speaking about the importance of guaranteeing access to education for all, the President explained that none of the nations that has been in Ghana’s situation, and that are now regarded as global powers, was able to advance without making education open to everyone.
From the United States of America to Japan to Korea to China, he stated that all of these countries put emphasis on broadening and opening access to education for everyone.
“The first country in the modern world to do free senior high school education is the United States of America. Towards the end of the 19th century was when the Americans decided to implement this policy. At that time, America was not what it is today. But it took the view that if it could make sure that every young American had the possibility of going to school, that would be the basis for the transformation of America,” he said.
This, the President explained, worked for America, adding that “today it is the biggest economic power in the history of the world. In Ghana, we are going to follow suit. We will empower our population to transform our country. You (students) are going to be spearheading that transformation of Ghana.”
With the first batch of free SHS students set to take the West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in 2020, he stated that the entire country would be watching out for their results.