Scholarship bill has been under discussion since 2017, not being rushed- Kwame Kumah

Joseph Kwame Kumah, Vice Chair of Parliament’s Select Committee on Education, has rejected claims that the Ghana Scholarship Authority Bill 2025 is being rushed through Parliament without proper scrutiny.

In an interview with Citi Eyewitness News on Thursday, July 17, Mr. Kumah addressed concerns from civil society and the public, clarifying that discussions about establishing a legal framework for scholarship administration in Ghana began as early as 2017.
“The assertion that the committee is rushing through the bill may not be wholly true. Parliament, appreciating the difficulties the [Scholarship] Secretariat was going through due to the absence of legislative backing, had an extensive discourse on the matter.”

He referenced the Parliamentary Hansard (Fourth Series, Volume 97, Number 50) from April 5, 2017, which recorded lawmakers’ discussions on the need for reforms and legislation to regulate scholarship administration in the country.
“For anybody to think that it is just today that the Minister or Parliament is rushing through a scholarship bill — the need has been there since 2017. Nobody is rushing any bill. Let it be corrected out there that Parliament began discussing this issue years ago," he said.

The Ghana Scholarship Authority Bill 2025 aims to create a legal framework to streamline the operations of the Scholarship Secretariat, improve transparency, and ensure equitable distribution of scholarships nationwide.