Education Minister-designate Haruna Iddrisu has announced that the government will refund the admission fees of first-year students in public tertiary institutions as part of President John Mahama’s commitment to making higher education more accessible.
Speaking during his vetting before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Monday, the Tamale South MP disclosed that the government has allocated GH¢345 million to cover admission fees for students pursuing general subject areas in tertiary institutions. However, this initiative will not extend to professional programs such as medicine.
Haruna Iddrisu
“On the authority of President Mahama, and with the approval of the Minister of Finance-designate, Hon. Ato Forson, this provision will be included in the government’s Reset Budget. The funds will ensure that students undertaking courses in general subject areas have their admission fees refunded,” Haruna Iddrisu explained.
He assured that students who have already paid their fees will also benefit from this refund.
“This initiative is a model experiment by President Mahama. We will evaluate its impact as a country. If it proves feasible, the program will be expanded to include more areas in the future. However, it does not discourage those who are capable of paying from doing so,” Iddrisu added.
The policy fulfills a key promise in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) 2024 election manifesto. It forms part of a broader strategy to reform tertiary education, particularly focusing on providing financial relief to students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and enhancing access to higher education.
