The Minority members of Parliament’s Education Committee have revealed that the government owes over £17 million in tuition fees to 927 Ghanaian students on scholarships in the United Kingdom, a debt that has accumulated over the past 27 months.
According to the caucus, the government’s failure to meet its financial obligations has led several UK universities to withdraw their support and cancel Memorandums of Understanding with the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat.
In an interview with Citi News, Dr. Clement Apaak, Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee, urged the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government to act swiftly to prevent further national embarrassment.
“According to the students, the government owes more than £17 million in unpaid fees. As a result, many students have been withdrawn by their universities. Some are not allowed to attend classes in person, while others face deportation or the threat of arrest and prosecution,” Dr. Apaak said.
He described the situation as dire, with some students being forced into desperate and degrading activities to survive. “We have information that some male students have resorted to selling their sperm, while some female students have turned to prostitution,” he added.