Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia has promised to make tertiary education free for Persons Living With Disabilities (PWDs) should he win the 2024 General Election. The Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party intends to achieve this by prioritizing the award of scholarships to all persons with disabilities, enabling them to continue their education at the tertiary level.
Speaking during his Western North Regional campaign tour on Friday, Dr. Bawumia said he has a personal commitment to supporting vulnerable people in society, and his government will particularly prioritize educational support for people with disabilities who qualify to pursue tertiary education.
“I believe that persons with disabilities need our support. We are giving scholarships to many people, but I want to dedicate some of the money from the Scholarship Secretariat and GETFUND to provide free tertiary education, including tuition and accommodation, to all persons with disabilities who will gain admission to universities, so they can all benefit from it,” he stated.
The Vice-President added that, aside from free tertiary education, his government will have PWDs and vulnerable people in society at heart, rolling out other forms of support for them. The Vice President, a dedicated patron of the Ghana Lepers Aid, stressed his personal commitment to supporting vulnerable members of society.
Experts believe the promise by Dr. Bawumia emphasizes the NPP’s commitment to universal education development and support for vulnerable people. This is also the second time the party has pledged to implement free tertiary education for PWDs.
In its 2016 Manifesto, the party promised free education for persons living with disabilities, anchored on the party’s commitment on Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715), passed by the President Kufuor NPP administration.
On page 126 of the NPP’s 2016 Manifesto, under the Party’s “Building A Fair And Inclusive Society” promise, the NPP stated that it would “enforce section 18 of the Disability Act, which provides for free education for persons with disabilities.”
However, after winning the 2016 general election, the party focused on implementing Free Senior High School Education and transforming the education sector.
Experts believe that, with free SHS now fully implemented and the educational transformation taking shape, the NPP can be trusted to move to the next stage of making education affordable at all levels, beginning with free tertiary education for PWDs. This is also in furtherance of Ghana’s broader aim of making education accessible by the progressive introduction of free education at all levels, as stated in Article 25 of the 1992 Constitution.
