The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has ended the long-running COCOBOD Scholarship Scheme due to the free Senior High School (Free SHS) initiative instituted by the ruling government.
The chairman of COCOBOD Peter Mac Manu said the board of directors of the COCOBOD has initiated the Cocoa Board Education Trust to provide primary school infrastructure in underserved cocoa-growing communities to help cocoa farmers and their children.
“As we bid farewell to the Scholarship Scheme, we must look forward and prioritise the continued educational advancement of the cocoa farming community. It’s with this vision that the board of directors has decided to establish the Ghana Cocoa Board Education Trust. This trust is a testament to our unwavering commitment to the prosperity and well-being of cocoa farmers and their children. The primary objective of the Education Trust is clearly to focus on providing essential primary school infrastructure in underserved cocoa growing areas,” he stated.
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Mac Manu said the decision to stop the scholarship scheme was necessary due to the impact of the Free SHS initiative.
“With the advent of the Free SHS by the Akufo-Addo administration, it’s time for us to adapt and evolve. The COCOBOD Scholarship Scheme, while a notable and valuable programme, has naturally lost its core purpose,” he said.
For almost 50 years, the COCOBOD has provided scholarships for children of cocoa farmers in SHS, covering their tuition, examination fees, boarding, and feeding through its scholarship scheme.
