Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has described the Free Senior High School (Free SHS)policy as the most far-reaching and consequential social intervention in Ghana’s political history since the 1992 Constitution came into effect.
Addressing participants at the Young Commons Forum at the University of Cape Coast on Saturday, February 21, the Effutu Member of Parliament outlined the broad impact of the education initiative, which was launched by former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo shortly after taking office in 2017.
According to Afenyo-Markin, while public policies inevitably attract differing opinions, the scale and reach of Free SHS set it apart from previous initiatives. By removing financial barriers to secondary education, the programme has enabled thousands of students especially those from low-income households to pursue senior high schooling.
“The critics can be loud and say all they can about the Free SHS,” he said, “but by far, without argument, it stands as the most emblematic social intervention of the Akufo-Addo administration and the most consequential social policy in Ghana’s Fourth Republic.”
Introduced as part of the government’s broader commitment to reduce inequality and expand educational opportunities, Free SHS has enabled hundreds of thousands of Ghanaian students to enroll in senior high schools across the country. The policy’s nationwide implementation has reshaped access to secondary education and become one of the defining legacies of the last administration.
Supporters of the policy say it has accelerated educational participation and leveled the playing field for students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, fulfilling key constitutional objectives to make secondary education accessible to all.
Critics, however, sometimes argue about sustainability and quality concerns, particularly as national resources are stretched to maintain the programme. Nonetheless, Afenyo-Markin maintained that the overall achievements of the policy outweigh these debates.
As Ghana continues to grapple with educational and economic challenges, Free SHS remains central to discussions on social equity and the nation’s development trajectory.