Parliament has approved a 156 million dollar loan facility between the government of Ghana and the International Development Association to finance the Ghana Secondary School Education Improvement Project.<\/p>\n
The project forms part of government\u2019s promise to build 200 new Senior High Schools across the country. `<\/p>\n
Part of the loan facility will also be used as scholarship for students in deprived areas who may have difficulties in paying their fees.<\/p>\n
But one aspect of the loan facility which is the provision of free sanitary pads for female students has attracted heated debate .<\/p>\n
Some Members of Parliament objected the idea that Ghana will borrow money to buy sanitary pads.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026There are a lot of items in this that in fact people will not take us serious; going to borrow money to buy sanitary pads. We must be serious\u2026!,\u2019\u2019 a minority MP said.<\/p>\n
Speaking on Eyewitness News, Deputy Minority Leader, Dominic Ntiwul said the Minority’s only problem with the loan agreement \u201cis from the project cost breakdown\u2019\u2019.<\/p>\n
According to him the cost of a school has been inflated by the government.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe told them in parliament that we will support the loan only on condition that they go back and re-look at the figures that accompany the project breakdown; for example during the budget the government budgeted for 50 schools, the cost of each unit school was 4 million Ghana Cedis and it was to be financed from GetFund.,\u2019\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n
The MP for Bimbilla further explained that government is now claiming to construct the same unit school at a cost of GHC13.7 million with a World Bank loan.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026and when you have taken a loan which you will pay with interest; you are saying that the cost of the same school is now GHC13.7 million; we find that unfortunate,\u2019\u2019 he added.<\/p>\n
The minority also raised concerns on an amount of GHC50.9million which government intends to use for research, monitoring and evaluation. \u2018\u2019Secondly you are spending another 50.88million Ghana Cedis on scholarship; comprising buying school uniforms, maths set, school bags, books, sanitary pads\u2026,\u2019\u2019 he revealed.<\/p>\n
Mr. Ntiwul questioned how government plans to sustain the project after exhausting the loan.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2019If you buy these things once and the money finish what are you going to do,\u2019\u2019 he quizzed.<\/p>\n
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By: Evans Effah\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana<\/p>\n