The Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS) has threatened to close Senior High Schools (SHS) in the Northern Region over a lack of funds to purchase perishable food items.
They hinted in a letter addressed to the Regional Director of the Ghana Education Service (GES) that no money has been paid for the 11 weeks of the second semester they have done so far, making smooth operations of the schools difficult.
According to the CHASS, the suppliers who give them perishables on credit have refused to do so due to the high amount of money owed them.
On this note, CHASS stated emphatically, “we wish to state that if we do not get immediate releases, the SHS 1 students of the single track schools who would be due to return to school tomorrow, Tuesday, August 16, 2022, would not report until we get money. This also includes those in transitional schools who are also billed to report on September 4, 2022”.
They added that they would be compelled to send the SHS 2 students who are in their second semester home.
“Management is also entreated to pay the recurrent expenditure of the schools, which has been in arrears since last year. The non-payment of this component of our money is affecting the smooth running of our schools in issues such as maintenance and repairs, field trips, and practical lessons in our laboratories,” the letter stated.
Meanwhile, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, the Minister for Education, has said on the floor of parliament in July 2022 that the food crisis in the senior high schools across the country is due to the government owing Buffer Stock Company an amount of GH₵340million.
While responding to questions on the prevailing food shortage in the schools, he said the government was working to resolve the crisis.
He stated that the government had already released and paid the Buffer Stock Company an amount of GHS 327,871, 809.10 pesewas this year.
Dr Adutwum stressed that they were working in line with the company to ensure “funding goes to them so that they can supply the food to the school.”