Ghana Elections 2012: Plans for Free Secondary Education might leave the Poor worse off, if not balanced carefully

Ahead of the Presidential and Parliamentary elections taking place on December 7, Ghana’s educational system has become the focus of controversial discussions between the two major parties, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC). Whereas the NPP advocates for free secondary education for all from 2013, the NDC calls for the creation of sufficient educational infrastructure – such as the building of more schools and teacher training centers – prior to abolishing fees for secondary education. The campaigns, however, do not address crucial problems in Ghana’s education system that affect mainly the poorest in the country. In order to successfully implement the abolishment of school fees, a balance of both ‘quantitative’ (such as the building of sufficient schools) and ‘qualitative’ approaches (including the improvement in quality of teaching and learning materials) needs to be achieved. Rather than an educational policy based on selective measures, a diversified overall strategy will create conditions that allow for significant enhancements in Ghana’s education system, and truly benefit the poor.

“Free SHS is coming in 2013”, the NPP propagates on t-shirts, banners and other advertisements distributed all over the country. The rationale behind this campaign is the comparatively low number of Ghanaian students enrolled in secondary schools. The NPP perceives the main reason for this situation to be the inability of many parents to afford the educational costs. The party propagates that by extending free education from 6 to 9 years, every student will enjoy access to secondary schools and the number of qualified graduates to run Ghana’s economy will increase. Critics say this quantitative approach, however, ignores the gaping holes and inequalities that already exist in Ghana’s educational system[1]. Although primary education is free, the net enrollment rate of students in primary schools in 2011 was only 77%[2], a figure indicating that the reasons for the low turnout rates lie elsewhere. In a survey by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) on the priorities of citizens regarding the 2012 elections, Ghanaians identified the poor quality of education, the lack of sufficient schools and teachers as well as the inadequate provision of teaching and learning materials as the most urgent problems to be addressed by the next government[3].

Studies show that the poor suffer acutely under these deficiencies[4]. Education experts worry that solely abolishing fees would not necessarily improve their situation, but could leave them even worse off, if the infrastructure is not extended accordingly. Under a ‘Free SHS’ policy, poorer citizens would still not enjoy equal access to secondary education, as they would have to compete with their richer counterparts for the limited places in secondary schools. Wealthier families simply have more resources available to eventually ‘win the fight’[5]. These families are more likely to bear all kinds of other transaction costs that are involved with their children’s high school education, such as payments for books, transport, clothing, private tuition, assisting school meetings, etc. Further, wealthier parents may be better placed to advocate for a place for their child in educational institutions and to apply pressure on teachers. Their children will likely go to secondary school regardless of the costs. As long as those discriminatory patterns persist, the extension of access to free education alone may thus not show significant improvements for the poor.

In their quest to attract voters, both parties seem to have overlooked another reason for the low enrollment rates at the secondary school level - namely the high dropout and failure rates in primary schools. In 2011, only about 47 percent of students passed their primary school exam, leaving more than half of the students with no degree[6]. The NPP, in its elections manifesto, addresses this issue in a subordinate clause only, whereas in the NDC’s manifesto this problem is not mentioned at all.  Even if in the next few years, access to secondary schools is strengthened significantly, not all students will have equal access to education. The high dropout and failure rates are alarming and point to a significant lack of quality in the school system.

The Ghanaian Ministry of Education in its 'Ghana National Education Assessment 2011' explains that students in urban schools enjoy a much better teaching quality than those in rural schools, as the majority of qualified teachers prefer to stay close to the city. Here again, it is the poor who suffer the most, since their families do not have the means to send them to a school in the city. Free access to secondary schools alone will not improve the education level of the rural population, as the quality in rural schools would stay the same, or even worsen, due to the higher numbers of students accessing the schools free of charge.

Education experts believe that it is not only crucial to extend the infrastructure in the education sector but also to improve the quality of the education system – including the sufficient provision of teaching and learning materials and the training of more qualified teachers[7]. Just after these conditions are improved, should the fees be abolished.[8] Ultimately, these reforms should take place taking regional differences into consideration. While the approaches of both the NPP and the NDC certainly have their pros and cons, the debate over their different education policies still fails to take into consideration the entire picture: Only if both the ‘quantitative’ and ‘qualitative’ aspects of the education system are addressed adequately, will Ghana be able to produce sufficient qualified graduates to run the country’s booming economy.

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[1] Gyasiwaa, A. (2012, 29 November) Eliminate schools under trees before implementing free SHS - Segbefia tells NPP’, http://www.modernghana.com/news/433290/1/eliminate-schools-under-trees-before-implementing-.html

[2] ‘Ghana National Education Assessment 2011‘,Ministry of Education

[3] NCCE (2012) ‘Election 2012: matters of concern to the Ghanaian voter’, Summary of the results  http://www.ghananewsagency.org/details/Education/Ghanaians-rank-education-topmost-priority-in-election-2012-NCCE-survey/?ci=9&ai=51977

[4] Akyeampong, K. (2008) ‘Educational Expansion and Access in Ghana: A Review of 50 Years of Challenge and Progress’, http://www.create-rpc.org/pdf_documents/50%20Years%20of%20Educational_Progress_%20in_Ghana.pdf;

Oduro, A. et al (2007) ‘Access to Basic Education in Ghana: The Evidence and the Issues – Country Analytic Report Ghana’, http://www.academia.edu/257932/Access_to_Basic_Education_In_Ghana_The_Evidence_and_the_Issues

[5] Ato, D. (2012, 8 November) ‘Nana Addo’s free SHS: Good for the rich, Bad for the poor’ http://ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/politics/artikel.php?ID=255574

[6] Danquash Institute (2011) ‘BECE results worst in 13 years, DI calls for urgent action’, http://danquahinstitute.org/news/1538-bece-results-worst-in-13-yrs-di-calls-for-urgent-action.html

[7] Akyeampong, K. (2008) ‘Educational Expansion and Access in Ghana: A Review of 50 Years of Challenge and Progress’, http://www.create-rpc.org/pdf_documents/50%20Years%20of%20Educational_Progress_%20in_Ghana.pdf

[8] Gyasiwaa, A. (2012, 29 November) Eliminate schools under trees before implementing free SHS - Segbefia tells NPP’, http://www.modernghana.com/news/433290/1/eliminate-schools-under-trees-before-implementing-.html