Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) has called on the Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, to ensure basic schools are timeously funded to conduct their end-of-term examinations without any financial burden imposed on poor parents. 

It also called on the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to ensure that no pupil was denied the right to participate in the forthcoming end-of-term assessment due to the inability of their parents to pay fees.

The think tank urged the Director-General of the GES to impose disciplinary measures on school heads who permitted the exclusion of any student from the upcoming end of-term assessments due to unpaid fees.

Right

A statement issued in Accra ahead of the end-of-term examination said the right to basic education was fundamental and unconditional, adding that its direct funding must, therefore, remain a non-negotiable obligation of the state.

“Public Basic Schools' term assessments started yesterday, Monday, April 7, 2025. Some school heads are demanding parents pay examination or printing fees, threatening to exclude pupils whose parents do not comply.”

“While Eduwatch supports parental contributions towards school development and learning, it is imperative that this remains strictly voluntary, in accordance with the policies and laws governing the delivery of free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (fCUBE),” it said.

Specifically, it said Section 2(b) of the Pre-Tertiary Education Act of 2020 (Act 1049) stated that, "basic education shall be free, compulsory, and universal," with Section Three providing that no child shall be excluded on grounds of economic hindrance.

Practices

As an institution committed to equity, Eduwatch, it said, strongly opposed any practices that excluded children from full participation in their right to basic education, including exclusion from school-based assessments due to socio-economic factors.

“It is the responsibility of the Government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Education, to ensure that funds are made available for the conduct of school-based assessments.”

“Although it is well-known that these funds have not been timeously available for years, continually supervising the imposition of fees on parents to atone for systemic funding deficits is not a sustainable way to effectively implement a government policy,” it said.