It’s heartbreaking to witness that, despite the promise of Free SHS, education has become more financially burdensome than ever.
Just a few years ago, in Opoku Ware School, students paid about GH₵500 per term. Over three years, that added up to around GH₵4,500 for a full secondary education. Now, under Free SHS, the costs are merely disguised, with parents still shouldering a significant financial strain, hidden beneath layers of bureaucracy and unexpected expenses.
Today, this so-called Free SHS program primarily benefits students in government schools, while students from private schools—no matter how well they perform—are often relegated to their last-choice schools or, worse, assigned to schools they never even selected.
It feels as though the system has been designed to enable corruption, with middlemen swooping in to “secure” top-category schools for families who can pay the price. And that price is no small matter: placements in Category A schools through these “protocols” can cost between GH₵15,000 and GH₵20,000. Beyond this, parents are forced to spend at least GH₵5,000 on supplies and essential items for their children’s education.
Today, schools are even demanding more expensive items, like plastic chop boxes costing as much as GH₵600, while the traditional wooden ones now cost GH₵120. Cost of students’ mattresses have risen to GH₵300, trunks to GH₵160, and scientific calculators, once GH₵70, now reach GH₵350. And that’s without even considering the soaring prices of provisions: How much is a tin of Milo today? A cup of gari? All the basics add up, piling more and more onto parents already struggling under the weight of “Free” SHS.
But it does not end there. The rising costs of extra classes add yet another burden, with parents paying no less than GH₵500 per course to ensure their children keep up academically. It is devastating to realize that Free SHS, which was meant to open doors to accessible education, has instead become a heavy financial toll. Education, once a beacon of hope and opportunity, now feels like a privilege reserved for the wealthy.
This status quo is unsustainable. The Free SHS program must be reviewed by any government that genuinely seeks to make quality education accessible to all, not just the few who can afford it. The dream of education for every child should not come at the cost of family livelihoods—it should be a promise kept, not a financial trap disguised as opportunity.
BY THEOPHILUS BERCHIE
[Deputy Student Affairs & Elections Director – NDC National Youth Wing]
