‘We’re paying it all’ – Mahama announces ¢452m in free tertiary fees for 156,294 students

President John Mahama has revealed that over 150,000 first-year students in public tertiary institutions will have their academic fees completely covered by the state under government’s bold No-Academic-Fee policy.

Delivering a national address to mark his first 120 days in office, he said, “The ‘No-Academic-Fee’ policy for all first-year students in public tertiary institutions was a key promise to ease the burden on families and expand access to higher education. My government has taken concrete steps to implement this.”

He disclosed that a staggering GH¢452,940,012.00 has been allocated to cover the academic facility user fees for 156,294 first-year students across the country for the 2025 academic year.

The funds, according to the President, are being directly disbursed through the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND).

“GETFUND has also been instructed to pay the fees directly to the tertiary institutions, ensuring timely disbursement,” Mahama said, noting that this prevents delays and bureaucracy that typically frustrate students and school administrators alike.

To streamline access, the government has developed the ‘No-Fees-Stress’ application portal, which is now live.

“First-year students can register and authenticate their eligibility for this government funding through the portal,” Mahama added.

The president also outlined expanded social protection efforts, announcing two additional policies—Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, known as MahamaCares.

President John Mahama has revealed that over 150,000 first-year students in public tertiary institutions will have their academic fees completely covered by the state under government’s bold No-Academic-Fee policy

Delivering a national address to mark his first 120 days in office, he said, “The ‘No-Academic-Fee’ policy for all first-year students in public tertiary institutions was a key promise to ease the burden on families and expand access to higher education. My government has taken concrete steps to implement this.”

He disclosed that a staggering GH¢452,940,012.00 has been allocated to cover the academic facility user fees for 156,294 first-year students across the country for the 2025 academic year.

The funds, according to the President, are being directly disbursed through the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND).

“GETFUND has also been instructed to pay the fees directly to the tertiary institutions, ensuring timely disbursement,” Mahama said, noting that this prevents delays and bureaucracy that typically frustrate students and school administrators alike.

To streamline access, the government has developed the ‘No-Fees-Stress’ application portal, which is now live.

“First-year students can register and authenticate their eligibility for this government funding through the portal,” Mahama added.

The president also outlined expanded social protection efforts, announcing two additional policies—Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, known as MahamaCares.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of FED Kastle Multimedia.