The Ghana National Association of Private Schools (GNAPS) has appealed to the government to absorb the registration fees for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and the West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
The Association said the owners of pre-tertiary schools were unable to afford the exorbitant fees charged by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).
The high exam fees, the Association said, had forced many private school candidates to drop out of school in either the final year in Junior High School or senior high school.
Professor Damus Tuurosong, President of GNAPS, said this in Accra at the launch of the private school Pre-tertiary Education Manifesto for the 2024 elections.
The Progressive Peoples’ Party and the Convention Peoples’ Party (CPP) were the political parties represented at the launch of the programme.
He said the 2024 WASSCE candidates in private SHSs paid GHC 465 as the WAEC registration fee.
“Those who have practical and oral language papers to write were required to pay an extra GHC14.50 and GHC19.50 respectively.
“Over the past four years, BECE fees have increased from Ghc 77 in 2020 to Ghc 214.01 in 2014, representing a 178 per cent hike in the fees,” he said.
He stressed that over the same period, private schools had, on average, increased their fees by only 45 per cent.
Prof Tuurosong appealed to the Government to extend the free Senior High School programme to private school students.
He called for the review of the Education Regulatory Bodies Act 2020, Act 1023, to do away with exorbitant regulatory charges by the National Schools Inspectorate Authority, the National Teaching Council, and the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment.
The Association among others, called for the abolishment of “nuisance” taxes that they believed were hiking the cost of doing business and the review of property rates and business operating permits charged by the Assemblies.
They also appealed to the government to scrap the 30 per cent Priority Placement System for candidates who sat for the BECE to avoid financial malfeasance.
Nii Adjetey Sowah, a representative from the CPP, said Professor Tuurosong’s presentation was a clear indication that there were challenges in the pre-tertiary level of Ghana’s education, calling for urgent action.
He said a future CPP government would prioritise the interests of the private sector to engender growth in Ghana’s educational sector.
