Free SHS: ‘Let Your Wards Come To School With Food’– CHASS Tells Parents

The Conference of Heads of Assisted Senior High Schools (CHASS) has called on parents and guardians to help alleviate the food shortages in senior high schools.

The plea comes as schools struggle with insufficient food supplies, particularly in northern Ghana, following the government’s failure to settle debts for perishable foods from the previous year.

Although CHASS had appealed to the Ghana Education Service (GES) to delay the reopening of schools due to unresolved financial issues, the request was denied.

Primus Baro, the National Secretary of CHASS, shared concerns with JoyNews, revealing that schools are rationing food and facing critical shortages of essential items, such as oil, maize, and beans. In some areas, schools have had to substitute margarine for cooking oil.Baro encouraged parents to send food items like gari, shitor, and sugar to support their children’s meals at school. He stressed that the food situation has worsened in the past few years, particularly in the Upper West, Upper East, and Northern regions, where rice is the only staple consistently available.The Free Senior High School (SHS) program, established under the previous government, has faced persistent challenges, including overcrowded facilities and food shortages. Despite these challenges, President-elect John Mahama has pledged to revitalize the program, aiming to improve its sustainability and quality.