S.H.S Food Shortage: Decentralization Is The Way To Go – NAGRAT President

President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Angel Carbonu, has said decentralization is the best way to solve the issue food shortage in our second cycle schools.

This is on the back of reports from the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools that some schools are facing shortage of specific food items recently.

Speaking in an interview, the President of NAGRAT has attributed the usual shortage of food items to the centralized system of food distribution to Senior High Schools. That is, government allocating the distribution of food items to the National Food Buffer Stock Company Limited only.

Mr Carbonu noted that before the commencement of the free S.H.S policy, heads of senior high schools after adding the cost of feeding to the fees needed to be paid by students, deploy food contractors to supply food items to second cycle schools and no issue of food shortage was reported.

To Mr Carbonu, if the distribution of food items is done by several food supply companies, issues of over supply of one food item, general shortage of food and disproportionate distribution of needed food items will be a thing of the past.

He however revealed that, the recent situation has compelled heads of Senior High School to resort to barter-trade adding that food shortage has resulted to high indiscipline on the part of students.

‘Decentralization is the way to go’ Angel Carbonu stressed.

However the Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament who is also the Member of Parliament of Builsa-South,Hon Clement Apaak has attributed the consistent shortage of food items in Senior High Schools to the non-payment of arrears owed the National Food Buffer Stock Company Limited.

Meanwhile, the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools(CHASS) has called on government to immediately find a lasting solution to the issue.

Story by: Kezia Medjie