This follows after a recent list of projects which will be financed by the Annual Budget Funding Account (ABFA), was released by the Ministry of Finance.
Ghana cuts off free senior high school programme from oil cash-fund
The government of Ghana has completely removed the Free Senior High School (SHS) programme from the list of projects and policies financed directly from the oil cash-fund.
The ABFA is the account set up by the government that receives allocations from oil and gas revenue in support of government budgets.
In 2018, the ABFA allocation to Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Education overshadowed allocations to other priority areas, such as agriculture and service delivery in health. For instance, out of the $307.1 million (GH¢1.546.38billion) approved to be spent as ABFA in the year 2018, education alone received over $80 million (GH¢417million).
But in a list released by the Ministry of Finance on projects that will be funded by ABFA this year, the Ministry of Special Project Development received the highest funding of GH¢652 million.
Other sectors which caught the government’s attention include the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development.
The government will, however, not strip off the Free SHS programme but it will rather look for other alternatives to fund the programme while prioritising the other sectors that are funded by the oil revenue.
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