Ghana’s President-elect proposes policy shift to hand over some public schools, hospitals to Churches

Ghana’s President-elect, John Dramani Mahama has called for a shift in policy towards closer collaboration with religious institutions in managing the country’s schools and hospitals.

Speaking about the role of faith-based organisations in education and healthcare while addressing the leadership of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches Council on December 18, Mr. Mahama emphasised the importance of moving beyond competition to partnership.

“Instead of being in competition with the Church and the missions, we should rather be partnering with them. Sometimes even hand over public schools and hospitals to them to manage so that it would be managed better and reduce the burden we have on the health services,” Mr. Mahama declared, noting the longstanding contribution of religious organisations to the West African nation’s education and healthcare systems.

Reflecting on his previous tenure in office, Mr. Mahama pointed to the proven success of mission hospitals and schools, which have long been respected for their quality and efficiency. He emphasised that government should focus on strengthening these institutions rather than duplicating efforts.

“The Church is known for its role in health and education for a very long time,” Mahama said. “Indeed, in our previous time in office, we had come to a stage where we wanted to see an expanded role of the Church. Both in education and health care and so one of the things I had indicated was that we need to have a change of policy in terms of building public hospitals.”

He also highlighted the growing demand for mission schools, which many Ghanaians now consider to be better managed.

“Everybody is clamouring to go to the mission schools now because they are better managed. And so we need to expand our partnership with the missions in terms of management of some of these facilities,” Mr. Mahama added.

Calls for return of management of mission schools to Churches in Ghana have been growing as faith based organisations complain about negative effects of secularisation on school children.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference together other Christian Church leaders have on several occasions called on government to cede control of mission schools to the church to address the deteriorating state of discipline and values among others which have become common in Ghanaian learning institutions.

In 2027, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo made what could be described as a historic promise of handing over mission schools across the country to churches.

The President, who was speaking at a graduation ceremony at the Trinity College in Accra on November 11. expressed the hope that a hand-over will help arrest declining moral standards in schools.

“The tradition of discipline, hardwork, and integrity that characterize the churches…are needed in our country,” he is reported to have said. The promise was part of the government’s 2016 manifesto pledge.

“Strengthen the participation of the Missions in the Mission-founded schools,” an extract from page 32 of the 2016 NPP manifesto said.

Although the President did not indicate a timeline for the handing-over, he noted that his government was “keen” on fulfilling the manifesto promise. Be that as it may, that has not yet materialised with barely two weeks for him to end his second and final term as president of Ghana.

In August 2020, some Catholic educationists in the West African country also called on government to consider handing back faith-based schools, saying that quality education and discipline were imparted by the religious entities when they managed their respective learning institutions.

Reacting to online videos, which showed students of some Senior High Schools in Ghana destroying school furniture, smashing bowls containing food in the school dining hall, attacking exam invigilators and journalists, and issuing threats to school authorities for being firm on invigilation during the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), they described the conduct as shameful and ridiculous.

Speaking at the 10th National Sacred Heart of Jesus Congress and the Golden Jubilee celebration of the National Sacred Heart of Jesus Enthronement Centre in Tamale, the Northern Regional capital, Mr. Mahama, then a presidential candidate pledged to re-open discussions of giving back the management of faith-based schools to religious bodies to run when he is re-elected in the December 7 elections this year.

He added that he would also collaborate with the Church to support technical and vocational training institutes that are being managed by them to provide skills for the youth.

“It is not an accident that most often, the best 20 performing SHSs are all faith-based and mostly Catholic schools.

“In this context, I notice the Church’s desire to bring some closure to the issue of the management of such schools as tabled in a draft memorandum of understanding during my tenure as President. I look forward to reviving and bringing closure to the MoU,” Mr Mahama said.