IMF tells Ghana to find sustainable way of implementing Free SHS

Ms. Christine Lagarde, IMF Managing Director, says Ghana must find a sustainable way of implementing the Free Senior High School (FSHS) Policy, which could play a pivotal role in improving educational outcomes.

Speaking at the Future of work in Sub-Saharan Africa Conference organized the IMF in Accra on Monday, she said, the FSHS policy was a good example of the focus needed in educational policy, particularly at the secondary level, to help build a skilled labour force to harness the benefits of new technologies.

Ms. Lagarde noted that despite successes in primary education, sub-Saharan Africa still lagged behind in secondary education, with only 30 percent of its children in secondary school; the lowest in the world, thus the need to focus there.

“One example comes from right here in Ghana. The government recently introduced the ambitious free Senior High School program. This program can play a pivotal role in improving educational outcomes if implemented in a sustainable way,” she noted.

She said harnessing the potential of new technologies for the future of work required a well-trained labour force with the right skills, which meant that education had to be a key priority.

This included not enrolment, but also the promoting digital literacy and identifying skills that would help the next generation to work with technology, she added.

Ms. Lagarde in is Ghana on a two-day state visit as part of a four-nation African tour, ahead of Ghana’s completion of its IMF programme.

Source: GNA