Diverse funding sources needed to ensure equal access

Despite higher enrolment at private higher education institutions in Ghana, there is concern about quality because of insufficient funding, said Justice Ray Achoanya Ayam, a consultant and former chair of the committee of registrars and finance officers of private universities.

He admitted that there are new private institutions that more students have access to, and that funding has improved, but these funds are still not adequate. Institutions are forced to continue to rely on traditional teaching methods due to resource and financial constraints.

Ayam read a paper titled, ‘Financing higher education in Ghana: Implications for equity and sustainability’, as part of Policy Dialogue 2023, a series organised by the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, on 5 September 2023 in Accra. The series focuses on education reform in Ghana and is funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Ayam said that, from a single tertiary institution in 1948, Ghana has 268 private institutions with a student population of 562,877 in 2020, the latest available data.

He said the government faces challenges in funding higher education as demand grows. Government funding is “shifting to tuition fees, philanthropy and private investment”. He noted that, although the institutions benefit from increasing fees, students are burdened.

The current model of financing the higher education sector also affects equity and sustainability, Ayam noted. “Equity initiatives have been implemented, but barriers persist for marginalised groups,” he said, adding that funding mechanisms that prioritise these students could promote equity.

Demand exceeds available resources

“Sustainability requires long-term financial resources and responsible management. This calls for diverse revenue streams and collaboration among stakeholders as well as continuous evaluation to ensure [the fulfilment of] that demand,” he said.

Ayam said that, although the government’s efforts to expand access through initiatives like the Ghana Education Trust Fund, or GETFund, and cost-sharing are commendable, further consistent and substantial investments are essential.

He said economic fluctuations impact funding for higher education, and this calls for stakeholder cooperation to maintain prioritisation even during economic challenges. “Demographic shifts, particularly a growing youth population and increased demand from high school graduates, call for innovative funding approaches.”

Ayam emphasised that, despite government subsidies, “demand has exceeded available funds, resulting in high student loan debt, which currently stands at 63% among graduates. For this reason, stakeholders must work together to enhance subsidies, offer scholarships and establish public-private partnerships.”

He recommended diversifying funding sources and increasing public-private collaborations to address these challenges and ensure high-quality education and research to enhance the country’s socio-economic development.

Public-private partnerships needed

In addition, he said, organisations responsible for quality assurance in the sector should be strengthened where capacity is concerned. The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission is such an organisation. Cooperation between business and academia also needs a boost to shrink the skills gap between graduates and market demands and boost research and innovation for social good by attracting funding and investment.

The government can further increase budgetary allocation for higher education within the education budget to reflect the sectors significance in accomplishing development objectives’, Ayam suggested. This should go hand-in-hand with exploring public-private partnerships as an alternative funding source.

Dr Prince Hamid Armah, the vice chairman of the parliamentary select committee on education, said there appears to be a mismatch of funding across the tertiary sector.

“The Free Senior High School has expanded access but, without funding, most needy students may not enter, even if they qualify,” Armah said, adding that, “constrained budgets are a challenge and make it very difficult to sustain funding”.

He said universities can do a lot by generating funds internally because over-reliance on official sources has become a problem. This is why the government can provide grants that should exclude emoluments to enable the universities to run properly.

Government should invest more

Daniel Oppong Kyeremeh, president of the National Union of Ghana Students, said he was disheartened that most students still have problems with funding and attributed this to the government’s not showing commitment to higher education because it is not investing enough.

Kofi Asare, executive director of Africa Education Watch, said there is inequitable access to tertiary education and mentioned the student loan and scholarship schemes as some of the interventions that are not responsive. “You must first be a student to qualify, so those who do not have the means to enter the university are left out,” he said.

Asare said there is the need for a model that will take care of the poor to access student loans. Although the education sector has expanded, funding has not increased in line with the GDP share.