The Registrar of the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat, Alex Kwaku Asafo-Agyei, has disclosed troubling practices in the administration of scholarships during the tenure of his predecessor, Dr. Kingsley Agyemang, including the extension of state sponsorship to the spouses and dependents of beneficiaries.
Speaking on Nhyira FM’s Kuro Yi Mu Nsem, Mr. Asafo-Agyei revealed that beyond covering tuition and stipends for students abroad, the Secretariat also financed the living expenses, visas, airfare, and allowances of their wives and children—a practice he described as highly irregular.
“What happened at the Secretariat was that when a student was awarded a scholarship, their wife and children were also added as dependents,” he said.
“The Secretariat paid for their visa processes, air tickets, and even allocated stipends. There are memos with official approval confirming these payments.”
He cited one example involving a scholarship awarded in January 2022 to Mr. Peter Mensah, who pursued an LLM in Law at Brunel University in London.
According to reviewed documents, the package included:
- £17,875 in tuition fees for Mr. Mensah,
- £16,008 per year in living expenses for him, and
- £8,160 annually for his spouse, Mrs. Gifty Oware Mensah, the former Deputy Director of the National Service Authority.
A letter issued by the Secretariat at the time confirmed that the award covered both the student and his dependents, including tuition, stipends, and travel costs.
The revelations come amid growing public scrutiny of the scheme, which has repeatedly been criticised for lacking transparency and disproportionately benefiting politically connected individuals.
Civil society organisations have renewed calls for urgent reforms to ensure scholarships are awarded fairly and target needy and deserving students rather than well-placed elites.
