Free SHS Needs Remodeling for Long-Term Viability, Warns Retired Supreme Court Judge Jones Dotse
Retired Supreme Court Justice Jones Dotse has called for a comprehensive remodeling of Ghana’s Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy, cautioning that its current universal model may prove unsustainable amid population growth and economic pressures.
Speaking at the 72nd anniversary celebration of Kpando Senior High School in the Volta Region on October 26, Dotse commended the initiative’s transformative impact but urged stakeholders to rethink its structure to ensure enduring quality education.
“But looking at our numbers, with the population growth and our economic growth, I don’t think it is sustainable in the long run. So, the stakeholders should start thinking about remodelling it,” Dotse explained, highlighting the policy’s strain on resources like infrastructure and teacher capacity.
Launched in 2017 under former President Nana Akufo-Addo, Free SHS has boosted enrollment to over 1.4 million students annually, raising completion rates from 58% in 2016 to 78% in 2024, per Ministry of Education data.
However, Dotse’s remarks echo growing concerns: the program’s GH¢4.8 billion 2025 budget faces shortfalls, with overcrowding in 70% of SHSs and a 15% teacher shortage straining quality, as noted in a 2024 World Bank assessment.
Dotse, a Kpando SHS alumnus who served 15 years on the Supreme Court bench until his 2023 retirement, emphasized collective responsibility: “Nurturing discipline and inspiring excellence is a shared duty of parents and teachers.”
The event, themed “Nurturing Discipline, Inspiring Excellence: A Collective Responsibility,” featured calls for infrastructure upgrades, with Dotse advocating targeted support for needy students over blanket coverage to balance equity and fiscal prudence.
President John Dramani Mahama’s administration, inheriting Free SHS, has pledged sustainability through a 2026 review, including means-testing and private sector partnerships.
