Government has announced a GH¢65 million allocation in the 2026 Budget to support free education for learners with special needs, including the provision of specialised learning tools and their inclusion in the national school feeding programme.
Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, disclosed this at a news conference in Accra on Wednesday, November 19, 2025 where he outlined key reforms in the education sector included in next year’s budget.
According to him, the initiative is part of government’s broader effort to remove barriers affecting disadvantaged learners.
“As I went to Akropong, I realised that even feeding was still dependent on a government grant, and that is not good,” he said. “So we will extend school feeding to all schools with special needs to help meet the needs of distressed, marginalised learners within our educational system.”
The Minister added that he has directed GETFund to release a minimum of GH¢65 million to operationalise the support.
“Accordingly, I have directed GETFund to make available a minimum of GH¢65 million to support this initiative for all learners with special needs,” he stated.
GH¢4.2bn Allocated to Sustain Free SHS
Mr. Iddrisu reaffirmed government’s commitment to the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) programme, announcing an allocation of GH¢4.2 billion for 2026.
He explained that this funding will be used to address persistent challenges associated with the double-track system.
“This time, GETFund will provide funding for Free SHS, and GH¢4.2 billion has been allocated in the budget. This will provide free feeding and free tertiary education for persons with disability,” he said.
The Minister also revealed a partnership with the World Bank aimed at resolving infrastructure gaps in senior high schools.
“We are happy to announce a new flagship programme—a two-year World Bank support project worth 180 million dollars. The World Bank team is in town to do needs assessments, and they will further support the completion of some E-blocks to help end double track,” he noted.
50,000 Housing Units Planned for Teachers
On teacher welfare, Mr. Iddrisu announced progress on the Teacher Dabree Project, which seeks to construct 50,000 housing units for teachers nationwide.
“I am currently reviewing a paper and proposal from the District Assemblies Common Fund, GESOP and the teachers’ unions to provide 50,000 houses for teachers,” he said.
“The Administrator of the Common Fund was in Morocco a few weeks ago to engage some partners. What we need now is to finalise the funding mechanism,” he added.
Mankranso SHS to be upgraded to Category A
The Minister also disclosed plans to upgrade selected senior high schools to Category A. He confirmed that Mankranso Senior High School will be among the schools to receive the upgrade.
By Daniel Opoku
