Colleges of Education: Govt to release feeding grants after threats by Principals

The Ministry of Education has promised to disburse feeding grants to the various Colleges of Education in Ghana.

This development comes after the Conference of Principals of Colleges of Education of all 46 Colleges of Education in Ghana threatened to shut down the schools by the end of May citing government’s failure to disburse feeding grants meant to cater for the feeding of the students.

The principals noted that food suppliers for the schools ceased due to arrears owed from as far back as the first term.

Speaking on the new development with host of Atinka FM’s AM Drive Kaakyire Ofori Ayim, President of the Conference of Principals of Colleges of Education, Emmanuel Nyamekye said but for government’s promise, the only option available to them was for the students to go home.

He explained that students are such that once they miss even a meal, they would think that it is the Principal who has failed or refused to feed them and they wouldn’t take kindly to that at all.

Emmanuel Nyamekye noted that after threats to close the schools by close of May, the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission have assured the schools that measures are being put in place to ensure the disbursement of the funds as soon as possible.

“The outbreak of the coronavirus in the country had already affected studies and we don’t want the semester disrupted. We cannot go to the open market and buy so our suppliers have the trump card and until we get some money to at least appease them, they would not give us any food items. The Ministry of Education and the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission have assured us that measures are being put in place to disburse the funds. We have seen paper works to that effect and we are hopeful,” he added.