General News of Friday, 12 March 2021

Source: 3news.com

2021 Budget: Akufo-Addo completes 28 of Mahama’s E-blocks

E-blocks constructed during former President Mahama's tenure E-blocks constructed during former President Mahama's tenure

As part of increased efforts to provide infrastructure in the implementation of the Free Senior High School Programme, 28 community day secondary schools were completed in 2020.

This was made known in the 2021 budget statement and economic policy of government presented by Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu on the floor of Parliament on Friday, March 12.

The community day secondary schools were introduced by then President John Dramani Mahama in 2013 as part of efforts to expand infrastructure in implementing a progressively free senior high school policy.

A total of 200 of these model secondary schools were promised to be ready at the end of Mr Mahama’s four-year presidency between 2012 and 2016.

However, not all the E-blocks were ready as of 2016 when he lost that year’s elections to Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

Presenting the 2021 budget, Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said the implementation of the Free SHS Policy in 2017 has resulted in increased demand for secondary education.

He announced that a total of 539 out 1,119 senior high school infrastructure projects have been completed “to accommodate the increased enrollment of senior high school students”.

“In addition, government completed 28 community day senior high schools E-blocks under the Secondary Education Improvement Programme.”

He stressed that government has invested heavily in education to increase access and improve quality.