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THE COST OF THE NPP NEW EDUCATION POLICY: FREE
UNIVERSAL EDUCATION UP TO AND INCLUDING SECOND CYCLE (SHS)
The new education policy of the NPP will ensure that all
children have access to free and universal education from
pre-school up to and including secondary education. This means
government will pay for the cost of boarding and lodging, fees
for admission, library, entertainment; SRC, science and
computer, examination and utilities in addition to tuition which
is already free for SHS students. Beginning September 2013 all
these fees for existing students will be absorbed by Government.
Day students will be given free meals. Beginning September 2014
all JHS graduates will go to SHS and their fees absorbed by
Government.
THE COST: The program will involve paying for the fees,
expansion and rehabilitation of existing SHS's, upgrading 350
selected JHS's to include SHS (referred to as cluster Schools)
and providing additional buses to the existing schools and the
cluster schools to bring student to and from school. Based on
JHS and SHS enrolment projections it is estimated that SHS
enrolment will increase by 183,570 students in the first
academic year September 2014-August 2015 when all third year JHS
students will be absorbed into SHS and TVET institutions. In
2015-2016 the number will go up by 370,840; and in 2016-2017 it
will increase by 553,456.
Fees: From September 2013 to December 2013 the cost of boarding
and lodging for existing students and two meals per school-day
for Day Students will be GHC 77,796,164. There will not be
additional tuition fees since the universal program will not
have started yet. From January 2014 to August 2014 government
will continue to pay only for boarding and lodging for the
students in school. But starting from September 2014 onwards all
JHS students will enter SHS. Government will therefore begin to
absorb additional boarding and lodging cost, tuition, and meal
cost for additional day students, and other fees. The recurrent
cost for 2014 will be GHC 288,189,958. In 2015 it will be GHC
517,975,463 and GHC 773,881,943 in 2016.
Infrastructure: The cost for expanding all existing SSS is
estimated at GHC215,036,886 per annum for 4 years. Expansion of
all existing TVET institutions will also cost GHC 58,011,973 per
annum over a 4-year period. Expansion of the 350 JHS
institutions to include SHS schools is estimated to cost GHC
378,743,750 per annum with each expansion costing GHC 4,328,500
per school. The expansion will include classrooms, ICT centers,
Science Labs, Libraries, Administration blocks, Assembly Halls,
Cafeterias, Headmasters' bungalow, 8-flat teachers' bungalow and
Common Rooms.
Total Cost of Program: The total cost of the entire program will
be GHC 754,628,772 (1% of GDP) in 2013; GHC 965,022,566(1.1% of
GDP) in 2014; GHC 1,194,808,071 (1.2% of GDP) in 2015 and GHC
1,450,714,551 (1.3% of GDP) in 2016.
Overall Education Expenditure: Total education expenditure as
percent of GDP in 2012 based on the 2012 Government budget is
4.1%. With the new policy our educational expenditure as a
percentage of GDP will rise to 5.7% in 2013 and increase to
5.8%> in 2016.
FINANCING: The new program will be financed by reducing the
allocation to GNPC by 50% and redirect the resources to
education. 60% of the Annual Budget Funding Amount of the oil
revenue that goes to the Budget which hitherto has been spread
thinly over various sectors will be allocated to education.
Finally, 40% of GETFUND will be redirected to support the
program.
NPP Communication Directorate
August 21, 2012
****Source 2012
Allocation to GNPC equals 40% of net cash flow from caried
and Participating Interest plus equity financing cost
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