The main purpose and aim of this article are to empower and advocate for Private School Parents to demand from the Ghana government through the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service (GES) for their Ghanaian children to also enjoy the rights of educational opportunities and facilities.

The aim is for the government of Ghana to start providing the same opportunities and facilities that it gives to public schools. Private schools are established in Ghana to support the constitutional agenda of Ghana's educational systems where governments fail to provide school buildings and resources for its operations.

Hence, private individuals find it needful and business-wise to establish such schools within vulnerable areas where governments fail to provide schools and education to our children. One may ask what is the difference between the public and private set up schools in Ghana? From my personal knowledge, they are the same in terms of goal setting but the ownership defers.

First of all, private school parents send their children to a private school because of several reasons. Some of the reasons that I can suggest can be first, no public school is closed to the community or no public school in the area. Secondly, some send their children to private schools because they have fallen for the assumption that private schools are far better than public schools
in terms of teaching and learning processes. Thirdly, some send their children to private school because of fees, whether moderate fees or high fees which will show the standard of learning in the school as a pride and gesture. Lastly, some may have different divergent reasons. All these assumptions of parents sending their children to private schools are baseless but what is important is the ultimate rights of the Ghanaian children to free education as enshrined in the constitution of Ghana.

It is the responsibility of the Ghana government to provide for all children their educational needs. But, here lies the discrimination, when it comes to the supply of human resources such as the posting of qualified teachers, the government only provides the public schools with such qualified teachers. The question that comes to mind is what then happens to a private school parent-child who is in a private school? Is that child not having the same right to be taught by qualified teachers that the government posts to public schools whereby at least some few should have been also posted to the private schools where the child attends? Those teachers will be on the government payroll as well and supervised by GES.

Another discrimination is that when the government prints books and supplies to public schools, the government does not send some to the private schools where Ghanaian children attend the private schools just because of one or two reasons as mentioned above. Why should the Ghana government discriminate against private school parents and their children as Ghanaian citizens this way? The private school parents are made to purchase books in addition to the private school fees they agree to pay because it is someone’s investment.

The government of Ghana purchases uniforms for Ghanaian children in schools but the governments discriminate by not supporting private school parent children with uniforms, why? Do we have equal rights as citizens? The constitution of Ghana under Article 25 (1)a and Article 25 (2), states that:

All persons shall have the right to equal educational opportunities and facilities and with a view to achieving the full realization of that right –
(a) Basic education shall be free, compulsory, and available to all.

(Every person shall have the right, at his own expense, to establish and maintain a private school or schools at all levels and of such categories and in accordance with such conditions as may be provided by law.

The above clearly shows that it is a recognition in the constitution for private schools to be established by individuals why because, the government knows that it lacks the facilities and resources to build and operate every corner of this country, GES must be in partnership with the private schools through which the children must also enjoy whatever the government of Ghana is responsible in providing to public schools.

In light of the above submissions, I would like to inform the private school parents to start demanding from governments about their children's rights that the government must fulfill fully or partially as below recommendations. The government of Ghana must identify all private schools in Ghana and factor in their plans and budgets for providing the private schools with:

(a) some government teachers under government payroll in order for our children to also benefit from Ghana government quality educational opportunities.

(b) Provide the private schools with some of the necessary textbooks to reduce
parents’ hardships in buying all textbooks and workbooks.

(c) Provide them with some ICT equipment such as computers and laptops to
support the children in ICT knowledge.

The government can implement this through the Ministry of Education Ghana Education Service and MMDCs. The parents are Ghanaians as well as their children. The Ghana government cannot be selective when it comes to national duties and responsibilities. Equal rights and equal enjoyment and satisfaction from the government must be strengthened by the citizens.

If not, then why will such private school parents go to vote on election day? Why will such parents vote on a referendum? Such private school parents are part of making you president and government and so therefore, no more discrimination when it comes to Article 25 (1)a and (2).