Accra (Greater Accra), 13th May ?99 ?

A 17-member technical committee to assist the Ministry of Education to work out proposals for the establishment of an Educational Trust Fund and restructuring of the Students Loans Scheme was inaugurated in Accra on Wednesday.

The idea, proposed by President Jerry Rawlings during his sessional address, would open the way for companies and other stakeholders to make regular annual voluntary contributions to enhance education.

The committee with the deputy minister of education, Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas as chairman, is to propose legal, financial as well as administrative and management structures for the fund.

It is also to look at options for mobilising resources for the fund, modalities for payment into the fund and identify potential beneficiaries, application procedures and disbursement criteria.

The committee is to recommend criteria and nominations for appointments of qualified individuals as trustees, measures to restructure the students loan scheme by expanding possible sources of loan funding.

It is also to propose periodic reporting requirements of fund trustees to the ministry for the benefit of Parliament and the Auditor-General.

The Minister of Education, Mr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, said "the function is another manifestation of the Government's relentless efforts to put in place an educational system capable of enhancing the nation's competitiveness as well as meeting the challenges of a millennium where knowledge will replace capital as a major factor of production."

He said currently, only between 35 and 40 per cent of JSS graduates gain admission to the senior secondary schools and about 60 per cent of qualified applicants are denied admission into tertiary institutions because of lack of adequate facilities.

It is projected that if the country's population growth rate stays at the current rate of three per cent a year and primary enrollment grows at the high rate of six per cent per annum, it would take the nation another 10 years to provide education for all children at the primary level and 20 years more to give access to all who qualify to attend the JSS.

On the students loan scheme, the Minister said it is saddled with a debt of over 72 billion cedis in arrears and interest that past students and government owe SSNIT.

"The high cost of running tertiary institutions is worsened by accumulated utility bills running into billions of cedis has become a major problem to the Ministry."

Members of the committee include Professor George Benneh, fomer Vice-Chancellor of University of Ghana, Mr Chris Nartey, Managing Director of Merchant Bank, Mr D.K. Mensah of Merchant Bank, Mr Oko-Nikoi Dzani, Managing Director of NDK Service, Mr Sam Tettey, managing Director of City Investment Limited, Mr V. Ate Ofosu-Armah of Ghana Commercial Bank and Mr E. Amartey Vondey of Social Security and National Insurance Trust.