Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum
The Minister for Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, has urged Ghanaians to protect the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy, by voting for Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) presidential candidate, in the upcoming elections.
According to him, the Free SHS policy, which has enabled over 5.7 million young people to access secondary education, must be sustained to ensure continued education and empowerment for future generations.
Addressing the “Bawumia for Education” programme in Accra yesterday, Dr. Adutwum stated that the next NPP administration is committed to strengthening and expanding Free SHS and technical and vocational education and training (TVET).
The programme, held on the theme: “Protecting Free SHS; Providing Skills for Jobs,” was a direct engagement of parents and students by the Bawumia campaign that sought to outline the presidential candidate’s commitment to deepen the quality of education from kindergarten to SHS.
The Education Minister emphasised that since the inception of Free SHS, enrollment has surged by 83%, creating a foundation for a well-educated, prosperous society.
Dr. Adutwum noted that Free SHS had achieved gender parity in secondary education, leading to more young women pursuing higher education—a positive shift for the nation’s future.
He also outlined key policies the next NPP government would pursue to bolster education, which include hiring more teachers with better conditions of service, expanding infrastructure to accommodate increased enrollment, and providing teachers with incentives, including the option to buy a vehicle with an engine capacity of up to 1,800cc.
On the housing deficit on campuses, the minister indicated that the NPP government would increase student accommodation at public universities and other tertiary institutions, making on-campus living more affordable.
Building on Free SHS success, Dr. Adutwum added that the NPP aims to make tertiary education more accessible.
This, he said, includes launching Free Tertiary Education Scholarships for persons with disabilities (PWDs) and integrating scholarship databases across public institutions to improve transparency.
According to him, the NPP government also plans to broaden eligibility for the Student Loan Scheme to cover post-secondary students enrolled in certificate and diploma programmes, with a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) training.
On STEM, he noted the distribution of 900,000 tablets to SHS students and the delivery of 2,718 vehicles to Ministry of Education agencies to enhance access to quality education.
Additionally, he said the government is collaborating with local and international tech firms to establish a National Robotics, Engineering, and AI Lab for training and research in the country.
Dr. Adutwum also mentioned that the NPP would fully implement the Centralised Applications Processing Service (CAPS) to simplify the tertiary application process, allowing students to “apply once, pay once.”
The plans, he hinted, include establishing an open university and exempting graduates with secured employment from mandatory national service.
He, therefore, urged Ghanaians to vote for Dr. Bawumia to ensure the continued advancement of Free SHS and a brighter future for the country’s young people.
By Ernest Kofi Adu vAdutwum