SHS food shortage: Gov’t working to clear GH¢13m debt – Education Minister

The Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei-Adutwum, has reiterated the government’s efforts to pay the outstanding GH¢13 million owed to the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) to provide food for some Senior High Schools (SHSs).

The minister confirmed that the government owed an initial amount of GH¢ 340 million of which GH¢327 million had been paid to ensure food supply to schools.

The government’s indebtedness to the company and other factors has occasioned a shortage of food items in some schools across the country in the last few weeks.

Responding to questions in parliament, Dr Osei-Adutwum said strides had been made in terms of supplies since the government committed to clearing a huge sum of the debt.

“Upper West and all the regions where there was a crisis in the last few days, they have all seen improvement in terms of supplies that are coming to them, and they will continue to see improvements from today on,” he revealed.

Reacting to the Education Minister’s remarks on Citi FM, monitored by The Ghana Report, the Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, said the assurances did not convince him.

He views the shortages as a payment issue by the Finance Ministry and said the Education Ministry had no solution to offer as far as the shortage of food items in schools was concerned.

“I will take assurances from the Ministry of Finance that the Finance Ministry will respect the disbursement or the cash flow projections as submitted to it by the Ministry of Education. Other than that, we will be having this discussion within two months again.”