GH¢2m released for Maths, Science &Tech scholarship

Accra, June 17, GNA - Government has released GH¢2 million to take care of more than 5,000 qualified applicants under the Mathematics, Science and Technology Scholarships Scheme for the 2011/12 academic year.

Dr Edward Omane Boamah, Deputy Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, said the amount was to propel science and technology, which was the bedrock of developed nations.

According to him, the release of the funds was part of the National Democratic Congress party manifesto to take part of the Ghana Education Trust Fund, to support mathematics, science and technology education in the country.

Dr Boamah said this at opening of a review workshop of the first phase of the Mathematics, Science and Technology Scholarship Scheme (MASTESS). The workshop was to afford stakeholders in education the opportunity to look at the way forward on the challenges of MATESS.

The challenges include review of the application forms, eligibility of students from private universities, examining of endorsements made by heads of institutions and the accessibility of the application to the public.

Last year over 10,000 applications were received by MATESS Secretariat and 5,000 benefited.

Dr Boamah bemoaned the acts of some people who went about selling the application form which were meant to be given to the public for free.

He said it was criminal for people to photocopy and sell the MATESS application forms adding anyone caught selling them would be handed over to the law enforcement agencies for prosecution.

Dr Boamah said the meeting would look at how best the application forms would get to District Directors of Education in all the 10 regions adding that Members of Parliament would be alerted.

He said although MPs would be given quotas under MATESS, stakeholders were yet to decide on them.

According to the Deputy Minister, MATESS application forms would also be posted on the Ministry's website to make them accessibly to all.

Professor Mawutor Avoke, Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba, who is a participant at the workshop, indicated that some of the application forms bore pictures of parents instead of the students.

He expressed optimism that at the end of the meeting participants would modify the medium of accessing the scholarship.

In July 2009, Cabinet and Parliament approved the establishment of MATESS, an incentive mechanism aimed at revamping interest and enrolment of Maths, Science, Technology programmes at both tertiary and pre-tertiary levels.