Increase Trainees’ Allowances if that is not what is preventing you from admitting More Applicants – Government told

The Public Tertiary Institutions in the country have been directed to adjust their fees for the 2022/2023 academic year to the maximum of 15% of their last approved rates.

This was stated in a release from the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission signed by the Director General, Professor Mohammed Salifu on Friday, 16th December 2022.

This has caused a hike in fees to be paid by students for the 2022/2023 academic year, causing a lot of outcry among students.

Many students have spoken about the possibility of them dropping out of school due to their inability to deal with the increment.

It could be recalled the Graduate Students’ Association of Ghana(GRASAG) to this effect made a release on 30th December 2022 registering their displeasure concerning the decision by the government to increase the fees by 15% across board. Other student Bodies such as the National Students Union of Ghana also joined the fight and even ended up exposing institutions that were charging fees above 15% as directed.

Sadly, the government is not ready to give a listening ear to the petition of these bodies and the students. GTEC rather in a release dated 22nd December 2022 instructed the tertiary institutions to accept 50% part-payment from students to enable them to register for their courses and commence their academic activities for the new academic year.

The question is, doesn’t it come down to the same fate of students paying the 15% increment by the close of the academic year? Or the 50% part-payment will automatically cause the disappearance of the 15% increment? Simply, students are still going to pay the total fees as instructed. Hence, ‘nothing new’

“The amount I am to pay for the 2022/2023 academic year is more than the admission fee I paid. Maybe the government doesn’t want some of us to continue with our schooling”, One student wrote.

“If they have increased our fees by 15%, they should also increase our allowances by 15%. Our Principals are suffering feeding Us three square meals daily with GH¢6.50. That GH¢200.00 can’t even buy our handout. Government for looking sharp”. A trainee stated.

Increase the trainees’ allowance by 15% if that is not the Cause of the 2022/2023 Admission quota.

Despite the huge number of applicants for the 2022/2023 colleges of education admissions, the 46 public Colleges of Education are to admit only a total of 12,002 applicants for the academic year. This directive was from the government of Ghana through the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission(GTEC) on 16th December 2022.

According to Professor Mohammed Salifu, the Executive Director of GTEC, the reintroduction of the admission quota system is due to the limited spaces at the various colleges of education to accommodate students to the running of the four-year system and not students’ allowances.

In an interview, he expressed;

“As far as I’m concerned, there’s no policy change with the reintroduction of the trainee allowances, so that hasn’t been in the equation at all. It hasn’t been one of our considerations, we are dealing with an existing policy that recognizes that we pay them[trainee allowances] allowances. But the number we are dealing with now is just physical numbers that are constrained by physical space that the colleges have”

“If it is about physical space and not the government’s inability to pay them allowances that have brought about the reintroduction of the admission quota system, then the government should increase the feeding components together with their stipends by 15% to prove us wrong” an applicant asserted.

“What then is preventing the government from increasing trainees’ allowances by 15% as the prices of everything in the training colleges are now up by 15%? And to the best of my knowledge, colleges are to admit few students for the 2022/2023 academic year so why can’t the government do the needful” A trainee posited.

“Everything in the colleges of Education is now up by 15% except the admissions. It is reduced by 30% for the 2022/2023 academic year. I hope they increase your allowances by 15% if not your allowances have caused some innocent souls to be denied access to education which is their right” One Professor told Coleman Publications.