Gov’t owes £17m in unpaid fees to ghanaian scholarship students in UK, parliament’s minority reveals

The Minority members of the Education Committee in Parliament have disclosed that the Ghanaian government owes over £17 million in unpaid tuition fees for 927 Ghanaian students on scholarships in the United Kingdom.

The debt, which has accumulated over 27 months, has led some universities to withdraw support and cancel agreements with the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat.

Speaking to Accra-based Citi News, Dr. Clement Apaak, Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee, urged the government to address the issue immediately to prevent further national embarrassment. He revealed that some students are facing severe consequences, including being barred from attending classes, threatened with deportation, and even facing legal action.

According to Mr. Apaak, the financial strain has forced some students into desperate situations, with reports of male students selling their sperm and female students resorting to prostitution for survival.

“According to the students, the government owes their fees in excess of £17 million. This has not been paid. Consequently, a number of them have been withdrawn by their schools.

“Some are not being allowed to take classes in person. Some are being processed for deportation and others are under threat of being arrested and prosecuted.

“So this is a very dire situation, which is leading to some students engaging in very despicable and humiliating activities just to survive. We have information to the effect that some of the male students have had to resort to selling their sperm. Some of the female students are engaged in prostitution.”