The New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has announced plans to offer free tertiary education for children of cocoa farmers if he wins the election.
This new program will replace the old cocoa scholarship scheme for Senior High School (SHS) students, which is no longer needed due to the Free SHS initiative.
During the Farmers’ Day event in Jocubu, Odotobri Constituency in the Ashanti Region, Dr. Bawumia emphasized that this policy aims to support cocoa farmers by reducing the financial strain of higher education for their kids.
He noted that COCOBOD used to provide scholarships for cocoa farmers’ children to attend SHS, but now, with the Free SHS policy, all children can go to SHS without paying fees.
He also mentioned that the government plans to redirect the funds previously allocated for SHS scholarships.
“Starting next year, COCOBOD will handle the costs of tertiary education for children of cocoa farmers,” he said.