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The National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) has hailed the government’s decision to uncap the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) as a major victory for students.
In a press statement released on Wednesday, March 12 by NUGS President, Daniel Korley Botchway, the union, which has long advocated for the uncapping of GETFund, believes this “policy shift will ensure education financing is no longer subject to politically driven decisions, thus providing a more reliable source of funding for the sector.”
For the past three years, NUGS has campaigned for this change, with a key focus on allocating more resources for the development of educational infrastructure, a critical issue in Ghana’s education system.
However, while NUGS supports the move to uncap GETFund, the union expressed concern over the reallocation of these funds to support the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) programme.
According to NUGS, diverting uncapped funds towards Free SHS rather than addressing infrastructure needs risks undermining the primary purpose of GETFund.
The union points to numerous incomplete projects funded by GETFund since 2016, affecting both pre-tertiary and tertiary institutions, and warns that this trend will persist if infrastructure projects continue to be sidelined.
To address this concern, NUGS has proposed the introduction of a Special Education Levy.
“NUGS firmly supports the Free SHS policy and believes it requires a dedicated and sustainable funding
mechanism. Instead of diverting the current 2.5% GETFund allocation from VAT, we propose the
introduction of a Special Education Levy—a 1.5% VAT or another tax—to create a sustainable Free SHS
Fund administered by GETFund. This would ensure the program’s continuity without affecting
infrastructure development.”
According to NUGS, this solution would allow the programme to continue without diverting funds away from critical infrastructure development.
NUGS argues that if the Free SHS policy is to be regarded as a valuable social intervention, a dedicated and sustainable funding mechanism is essential to ensure its success while still prioritising the development of educational infrastructure in Ghana.
