Free SHS Prospectus To Be Reduced, Some Items Are Not Needed - Education Minister

According to statements made by the Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, the number of free SHS Prospectuses that would be distributed in the future will be severely reduced. According to him, there are some things on the list that are unnecessary.

During an appearance on the DwasoNsem show on Adom FM, Yaw Osei Adutwum disclosed that the government had made senior high school education free in order to assist the less fortunate. However, there are some SHS headmasters who include specific elements on the prospectus that don't seem to have any bearing on the programme. This is because to the fact that the government that is led by Akufo Addo gives a lot of stuff to different SHSs all across Ghana. In the meanwhile, the prospectus has also provided information regarding some of these things. According to him, this places an additional responsibility on the shoulders of parents.

"You will witness what is going to take place very shortly. There will be significant cuts made to the prospectus. There is no requirement that all of these things be included in the list. Even though the government has made secondary schooling free for low-income students, they continue to have difficulties because of this prospectus. Even now, I'm not sure I follow.

It should be recalled that in February of this year, the Ghana Education Service served a notice to all heads in various senior high schools in the country concerning the issuing of unapproved prospectus and also the sale of some products to the SHS 1 students which have not been authorised by GES. The notice concerned the issue of unapproved prospectus and also the sale of some items to the SHS 1 students which have not been authorised by GES.

The Ghana Education Service(GES) has made it very apparent that it will conduct an exhaustive inquiry into this problem, and that any school official or headmaster found culpable would be held accountable.

GES recommended that all parents purchase products for their children's schools from the open market rather than the schools in which the children were enrolled.

The complete statement that the GES sent to all heads of various SHS institutions may be found here.

"It has come to the attention of the Management of the Ghana Education Service that some Heads of Second Cycle Schools are issuing unapproved prospectus and also selling some of the items on the prospectus to Form One students who report to their schools for admission. This practise has been brought to the attention of the Ghana Education Service." There are also reports that several Heads are peddling free stuff that should rightfully belong to the students, but instead they are selling them.


The management of the Ghana Education Service takes strong offence to this practise, and they desire to express unambiguously that this practise is illegal and must end with immediate effect. They take strong exception to this practise because they wish to state unequivocally that they take strong exception to this practise. As quickly as possible, investigations into the issues will get under way to ensure that the appropriate actions are taken at our institutions.

Therefore, heads of schools in the second cycle are being reminded to adhere to the standardised unified prospectus that has been approved for pupils. Any Head of School who is found to have demanded any item(s) that are not on the approved list will be subject to severe punishment. In order to prevent any potential conflicts of interest on the part of the school administration, it is imperative that parents and guardians be given the opportunity to acquire the permitted things listed on the prospectus from the general public rather than from the schools themselves.

By this, Regional Directors of Education are ordered to visit Second Cycle Schools under their jurisdiction to ensure that Heads of Schools comply with the following guidelines. This will enable a smooth admission process and effective academic work for Form One students.