Scholarship bonanza: Parliament passes new bill to amend how scholarships are awarded

Parliament has passed the Ghana Scholarships Bill, following what Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu says were extensive consultations with major stakeholders.

The new bill, which is awaiting presidential assent, aims to establish the Ghana Scholarships Authority, which will oversee and reform the awarding of government educational scholarships .

The bill, which was laid before parliament in July, was suspended after calls by  civil society organisations  for broader stakeholder consultations. The Citizens’ Coalition, which led the call, argued that the earlier draft failed to address the structural weaknesses in the country’s scholarship system and risked institutionalising opacity, nepotism, and political interference. With those consultations now concluded, Parliament has approved the bill.

The new legislation follows The Fourth Estate’s exposé, The Scholarship Bonanza, which uncovered how government scholarships meant to support academically gifted but financially disadvantaged students were often dished out to individuals with strong political ties and those from affluent backgrounds. 

Key provisions of the bill

 According to the bill, the Authority will be required to ensure gender equity in the award of government scholarships, publish details of applicants and beneficiaries, and fund foreign scholarships for programmes that are not available in the country.

Once assented to by the President, the legislation would usher in a new era in the administration of scholarships, eliminating political patronage, corruption, cronyism and nepotism in the award of government scholarships. Under the new law, only Ghanaians who are academically brilliant but financially needy will be eligible for scholarships.

The bill also introduces strict accountability measures, requiring beneficiaries to return to the country to serve.Beneficiaries who refuse to return to Ghana  after completing their studies will be required to repay the full scholarship amount, plus interest at the prevailing Bank of Ghana rate.

Governance structure and ministerial powers

The legislation establishes a governing board for the Ghana Scholarships Authority, chaired by a presidential appointee and composed of senior representatives from the Ministries of Education, Finance, Labour and Employment, Youth Development and Foreign Affairs. The board will also include a representative from the Attorney-General’s Office, one nominee from the Association of Ghana Industries, the Director-General of the Scholarship Authority and three presidential nominees, at least one of whom must be a woman.

 In consultation with the Board, the Minister of Education will develop regulations to guide the administration of scholarships, including procedures for applying, eligibility criteria, as well as any other requirements necessary for the effective implementation of the Act.

Moving the motion ahead of the passage of the bill, the Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, stressed that the Act will guarantee fairness by prioritising individuals who genuinely need support. He said the reforms will eliminate favouritism and political influence, while creating a transparent system grounded in merit and need.

“I believe that the establishment of the Ghana Scholarship Authority will streamline the administration of scholarships and make it accessible to students from disadvantaged backgrounds,” the minister added.

He further said that the authority would be tasked with establishing clear eligibility criteria and monitoring compliance, while ensuring accountability for the use of public funds allocated to education support.

The Ghana Scholarships Secretariat, established in 1960 by a Presidential fiat, has for decades overseen scholarship awards without a legislative framework. In practice, its operations have been shaped by conventions and decisions of the secretariat’s management, conditions that opened the door to political patronage, corruption and nepotism in the award of government scholarships.

The Scholarship Bonanza series, The Fourth Estate’s investigations, exposed a list of politically connected individuals and social elites as beneficiaries of scholarship awards, including Dr. Dennis Addo, the founder of the Claron Hospital, and a member of the New Patriotic Party; Lucie Ekeleba Blay, daughter of Freddie Blay, the then Board Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation and former National Chairman of the NPP; Gifty Oware-Mensah, the then Deputy Director of the Ghana National Service Secretariat; and Nana Adubea Asante-Apeatu, the daughter of a former Inspector-General of Police, David Asante-Apeatu.

Some individuals also received multiple scholarships, with amounts ranging from GBP 13,250 to GBP 55,000, covering tuition and living expenses for foreign studies. Meanwhile, countless deserving students in Ghana are denied this support and are left struggling to continue their education. Others outside the political and influential circles who received scholarships are now facing harsh realities, tuition and living expenses are in arrears, leaving some at risk of deportation. Others are forced to turn to unconventional means just to scrape together enough money for tuition and hostel fees.

The exposé triggered national outrage and demands for accountability. The former Auditor-General, Daniel Yao Domelevo, the Executive Director of the Institute of Education Studies, Dr Peter Anti, and the former President of the Ghana Bar Association, Yaw Acheampong Boafo, criticised the practice and urged Parliament to enact a law to reform the Secretariat’s operations to promote equity and transparency in the administration of scholarships.

Heading to the 2024 general elections, both the National Democratic Congress (NDC), then in opposition, and the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) pledged to reform the government scholarship scheme. President John Dramani Mahama, who was then a flagbearer, criticised what he called entrenched political patronage in the scholarship scheme and committed to aligning scholarship awards with national development goals. He also pledged to introduce legislation to regulate the award of scholarships, barring political appointees and their associates from benefiting and to eliminate corruption from the regime.