Vice President and New Patriotic Party (NPP) Presidential Candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has highlighted the importance of the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy in reducing inequality and advancing Ghana’s development. 

Introduced in 2017 by the Akufo-Addo administration, the Free SHS policy has provided access to secondary education, benefiting millions to date.

Speaking in Asante Akyem Central Constituency during his campaign tour in the Ashanti Region, Dr Bawumia explained that the NPP government implemented Free SHS for two main reasons: to enable the poor and needy to access secondary education and to raise Ghana’s literacy rate, which he emphasised is crucial for national development.

“When you look around the world, the countries that have progressed are those with high education levels. Nations with higher rates of education tend to advance more quickly in development,” Dr Bawumia told stakeholders in the Constituency.

“Economics and other studies have shown that for a country to develop quickly, education levels must also increase. But in Ghana, many children from poor backgrounds could not afford secondary education. While the children of the wealthy could attend, many children of the poor were left behind,” he continued.

“This inequality was hindering our country’s progress, as there were far more children from disadvantaged backgrounds than those who could afford secondary education. That’s why we pledged to introduce Free SHS if elected, to give every child, regardless of their background, the opportunity for secondary education.”

Dr Bawumia recalled the opposition the policy initially faced from former President John Mahama, who at the time dismissed the proposal as unrealistic.

“When we announced plans to introduce Free SHS, former President Mahama opposed it and said it was not feasible. He even went as far as to call it a ‘419’ scam,” Dr Bawumia noted.

The Vice President underscored that despite initial resistance, the NPP’s commitment to Free SHS has had a transformative impact on education access and the nation’s overall development trajectory.