Prioritize equitable distribution of education funds—EduWatch to Haruna Idrissu
The Africa Education Watch (EduWatch) has called on the Minister-designate for Education, Haruna Idrissu, to focus on equal distribution of education funds and avoid prioritizing a few flagship policies.
According to the Executive Director of EduWatch, Kofi Asare, if there should be any legacy to be pursued at the ministry, it should be the adoption of core principles of equitable policies.
In an interview with the media, he acknowledged that resources are unevenly distributed across the country, resulting in poorer learning outcomes for disadvantaged areas compared to better-resourced urban areas.
“We have a problem with the fund where there is inequity within the distribution of resources, and because of that, it affects the distribution of learning outcomes. You can see that in the B.E.C.E results. You will realize that, in the urban areas, they are doing 20% better than the deprived areas,” he said.
However, Mr. Kofi Asare believes that Haruna Idrissu’s wealth of experience makes him an ideal candidate to lead the ministry and implement much-needed reforms. He advised that the minister-designate focus on the most disadvantaged areas of the country, where education is lagging, particularly highlighting the Northen Region where Haruna Iddrisu comes from.
“Coming from the most deprived part of the country, the minister-designate becomes the first minister of education from the Northern region since the 4th Republic, and that is part of the country where education is a perilous shadow of itself; they are very far behind, and so I advise that he works hard to raise the standard of education in these areas to be on the same level as the so-called endowed regions by ensuring equitable distribution of funds.
About the implementation of the free tuition fees for first-year tertiary students, Mr. Kofi Asare said, “EduWatch and other stakeholders will collaborate with the government through the 120-day forum to develop the roadmap to define the beneficiaries.”