Govt to pay GH₵994 per student under Free SHS private school pilot
An estimated 25,000 students will be supported in the first phase of a government plan to expand the Free Senior High School (SHS) programme to selected private schools across the country.
Under the new arrangement, each student placed in an approved private SHS will receive an annual government stipend of GH₵994 to help cover tuition costs. The initiative is aimed at easing congestion in public schools and gradually phasing out the double-track system.
The support package follows a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Education and the Conference of Heads of Private Second Cycle Schools, formally integrating private schools into the implementation of the Free SHS policy.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu, who signed the agreement on behalf of the government, described the move as a strategic step toward expanding access and improving efficiency in the education sector.
“The government is committed to providing a stipend to support students moving into private schools as part of this pilot inclusion. For a start, that’s the commitment we make to the Ghana National Council of Private Schools,” he said.
President of the Conference of Heads of Private Second Cycle Schools, I.K. Mensah, welcomed the initiative, saying it would ease pressure on public schools while offering parents more educational choices.
He clarified that the GH₵994 support applies to day students only. Parents who wish to enroll their children as boarders, he said, will pay the difference between the government’s contribution and the school’s boarding fees.
“For example, if a school charges GH₵2,000, government covers GH₵994, and the parent pays the remaining amount,” he explained.
Education authorities say the pilot phase will be closely monitored to inform a possible nationwide rollout in the coming academic years.
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