Ghanaian Scholarship Students in UK Petition British Government Over Unpaid Fees and Stipends

A group of Ghanaian government-sponsored students studying in the United Kingdom has petitioned the British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham urging the UK government to intervene over what they describe as Ghana’s prolonged failure to pay their tuition fees and living allowances.

The petition, dated July 30, 2026, was submitted by the leadership of the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat-sponsored students and the UK PhD Cohort. In it, the students claim they have gone for more than 40 months without receiving stipends, leaving many in severe financial hardship.

According to the petition, the funding delays have disrupted the academic progress of several beneficiaries, with some students reportedly denied access to university services because of unpaid tuition fees, while others have allegedly been withdrawn from their academic programmes.

The students further claim that the prolonged delays have left some of their colleagues homeless and struggling to meet basic living expenses.

They said they had previously raised similar concerns with the UK government but alleged that the situation has remained unresolved.

The petition also criticises Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, H.E. Zita Benson, accusing her of failing to effectively address their concerns. The students allege that, instead of helping to resolve the matter, the High Commissioner publicly criticised affected students on social media, which they believe worsened their predicament.

According to the petitioners, repeated attempts to engage the High Commissioner have yielded little progress, describing her approach as “aggressive and uncompromising.”

The students argued that the United Kingdom remains one of the leading destinations for Ghanaian scholarship beneficiaries and warned that the prolonged delays in payments are threatening the academic futures of many students.

They are calling on the British Prime Minister to engage President John Dramani Mahama to facilitate the immediate settlement of all outstanding tuition fees and stipends owed to Ghanaian scholarship beneficiaries in the UK.

The petition also urges the UK government, particularly the offices responsible for education and immigration, to suspend the acceptance of new scholarship award letters issued by the Ghana Scholarships Authority for students intending to study in the UK until all outstanding financial obligations to current beneficiaries have been cleared.

The petition was signed by executives of the UK PhD Cohort and copied to media organisations in both Ghana and the United Kingdom.

The Ghana Scholarships Authority and the Ghana High Commission in the United Kingdom are yet to publicly respond to the allegations contained in the petition.

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Yaw Opoku Amoako

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