Government increases Disability Grant by 200%.

The Scholarship Secretariat has announced a 200% increment in the disability grant to ensure that students with disabilities have the necessary assistance (funding support) to enable them to access, fully participate in and successfully complete their chosen course of study in approved tertiary institutions in the country.

Speaking at the launch of the Disability Support Initiative (DSI) program at the University of Education Winneba.

Registrar of the Scholarships, Kingsley Agyemang reiterated that the DSI is not a new initiative but an enhanced and upward reviewed package in the form of grants given to postgraduate students with varying degrees of disabilities to reduce the burden of educational cost encountered in their studies for smooth academic work.

He also called on tertiary institutions to complement this laudable initiative by establishing or creating an Endowment to Support Disability-related Initiatives on Campus.  This can be attained through the collaboration between University students and administrators.

“It is also an acknowledged fact that Students with Disabilities are under-represented in the educational system, stigmatized and have to clear hurdles to compete on an equal basis with other colleagues with the view to achieve academic success”

“One key issue worth considering is whether our educational system, as well as policies of the tertiary institutions, reflects the challenging circumstances of SWDs regarding a discount on the payment of tuition and academic facility user fees, purchase of educational items, etc.

Against this backdrop as aforementioned, it is therefore not out of place that we bring in this laudable intervention with the view to restore confidence, hope and empower the SWDs in the tertiary institutions”, he said.

MODALITIES OF IMPLEMENTATION

With regard to the implementation processes, the status quo remains. Eligible student beneficiaries are required to provide evidence of their respective circumstances (e.g. a doctor’s report confirming the impairment or condition).

The reports are submitted through their respective institutions to the Secretariat and after vetting funds would be transferred through the student’s respective personal bank accounts.

This was a departure from the previous years whereby the applications are processed manually resulting in delays in payment, lack of transparency, and accountability.

With the increased number of students with Disabilities, the Secretariat is expected to receive an appreciable large number of applications (state figure?) and expend about (GHS……. state figure?) for the 2021/2022 academic year.