The Ministry of Finance will today release GH280 million for implementation of the Free Senior High School (SHS) programme this year.
The money which is a little over half the total amount needed for the programme is expected to hit the accounts of the 647 SHSs across the country.
The government in this year's budget allocated GH486 million for the implementation of the free SHS programme for the 2017/2018 academic year.
The Deputy Minister of Fiance, Mrs Abena Osei-Asare who disclosed this to journalists on the sidelines of the 2018-2021 budget stakeholders consultation, in Accra, yesterday said, the Fiance Ministry was waiting for the Ministry of Education to furnish it with the number of students which have been placed in the various SHSs.
Asked when the remaining 50 per cent would be released, Mrs. Osei-Asare responded "once you enter school, you don't need to pay all your fees within a month." "We initially decided to release 20 per cent, but we have increased it to 50 per cent more than what we initially said we will do," she said.
She said, the Ministry of Finance had been furnished with the account numbers and branches of all the 647 SHSs and their accounts would be credited today.
The Deputy Minister entreated adb, GCB, and the other rural banks to inform the heads of the various schools immediately their accounts were credited.
Mrs. Osei-Asare said the Free SHS was a flagship programme of the government and would ensure the programme was properly implemented for it to succeed.
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