CHASS Urges Parents to Provide Food for SHS Students Amid Feeding Crisis

By
Ellis Ferdinand
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2022 SHS Food Crisis: SHSs to do school farming to support food supply - chass Minister
2022 SHS Food Crisis: SHSs to do school farming to support food supply - Minister

Ferdinand | EducationGhana |  January 08| CHASS Urges Parents to Provide Food for SHS Students Amid Feeding Crisis

 The Conference of Heads of Assisted Senior High Schools (CHASS) urges parents to support their children with food due to a lack of school feeding funds. Schools in northern Ghana face severe shortages.

 

CHASS Calls on Parents to Provide Food for SHS Students Amid Ongoing Feeding Crisis

The Conference of Heads of Assisted Senior High Schools (CHASS) has advised parents to ensure that their wards bring food to school due to severe shortages in food supplies. This plea serves as an indirect request for parental support in sustaining student welfare within schools.

 

Food Shortages and Calls for Assistance

Ahead of the reopening of schools, CHASS requested the Ghana Education Service (GES) to reschedule the reopening date, citing a lack of funds for student feeding. However, the request was declined, and SHS3 students returned to school as scheduled.

Just five days into the new semester, CHASS National Secretary, Primus Baro, expressed concerns over the worsening food situation, urging parents to provide both financial and non-financial support.

Rationing and Critical Shortages in Northern Ghana

In an interview with JoyNews, Baro disclosed that schools have been forced to ration food supplies, leading to an alarming situation. He specifically encouraged parents to send their children to school with staples like gari, shitor, and sugar to supplement school-provided meals.

“The food situation has not improved in the past two or three years and has worsened at this particular time,” Baro emphasized.

Schools in northern Ghana are experiencing particularly severe shortages. According to Baro, basic food items like oil, maize, and beans are unavailable, leaving some schools with only rice and gari.

“For example, in my school, we do not have a single drop of oil, so my matron has been using margarine as a substitute for cooking,” he added.

Challenges of the Free SHS Programme

The Free Senior High School (SHS) programme, introduced under former President Nana Akufo-Addo, has faced persistent challenges, including inadequate classroom and dormitory facilities, food shortages, and delayed funding.

Critics argue that while the programme has increased enrollment, it has not necessarily improved educational quality.

John Mahama’s Promise to Improve SHS Feeding

Newly elected President John Mahama has pledged to enhance food provision in secondary schools, ensuring that students receive quality and sufficient meals. He reassured the public that his administration intends to revitalize the Free SHS programme rather than abolish it.

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