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Minister-designate for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has announced that the government plans to refund tuition fees to first-year students in public universities who have already paid. This initiative forms part of the "No Fees Stress Policy" promised by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) under John Mahama.
In the lead-up to the 2024 general election, the NDC outlined the policy, which aims to waive tuition fees for first-year students in public tertiary institutions. The initiative intends to ease the financial burden on students transitioning from senior high school by providing grants to universities to cover the costs.
During his appearance before the Appointments Committee for vetting on Monday, 20th January, Haruna Iddrisu revealed that implementing the policy would cost approximately 345 million Ghana Cedis.
He stated:
President Mahama and the NDC promise free tuition for students from level 100 who undertake normal programmes in the various public universities of our country, including what he has said, expanded to private tertiary institutions. The country will require about 345 million Ghana cedis for the population of students who enter tertiary institutions.
Haruna Iddrisu added that students who have already paid their fees would receive refunds, though parents who prefer to pay may still do so.
We intend to provide that money to the affected universities, at least to make refunds to all those who have already paid those fees. The beauty of this is that it's open, even for parents who are still willing to pay, under this principle introduced by the NDC.
The policy has faced criticism, including from former Chief of Defence Staff Brigadier General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah (Rtd), who argued that parents should bear the responsibility for their children’s tertiary education.