Teacher trainees, will from next month receive GH¢204 each as monthly allowance from the Students Loan Trust Fund (SLTF).

Each student is entitled to GH¢400. But out of that amount, GH¢196 will go directly to the colleges to pay for trainees’ utilities and feeding.

This amount appears to be less than the GH¢452 the trainees were receiving after deductions before the allowance was scrapped in the 2013/2014 academic year by the previous government.

READ ALSO: Teacher trainee allowance to be disbursed through Students Loan Trust

The figure means that out of the about 45,000 teacher trainees, each trainee will receive GH¢816 directly per semester, that is, if each semester is four months. The government will, therefore, spend 144 million per academic year.

The government is also expected to spend at least GH¢18 million monthly on the projected number of students, with GH¢9.18 million of the amount going to the trainees in monthly allowances, while GH¢8.82 million goes to the colleges for feeding and the payment of utilities.

The Chief Executive of the Student Loan Trust Fund, Nana Kwaku Agyei Yeboah, told the Daily Graphic that his outfit was selected to disburse the allowance because it had the necessary structures in place to make the programme transparent and accountable.

READ ALSO: Teacher trainee allowance should be scrapped - IMANI

He stressed that the allowance was not a loan and that beneficiaries would not be required to pay it back.

Meanwhile, the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE) will handle the funds that will be given to the colleges.