EduWatch ‘rates’ Mahama’s 120 days Social Contract on Education
Africa Education Watch (EduWatch), following John Dramani Mahama’s 120 days in office as newly elected President, has rated his social contract focused on economic stability, infrastructure, and social equity.
The rating comes after President John Dramani Mahama, ahead of the 2024 presidential election, either confident of emerging victorious or as a campaign tactic, signed a social contract with Ghanaians.
This contract, which Mahama dubbed “Mahama’s First 120 Days Social Contract with the People of Ghana,” as the name suggests, outlined things he would undertake in the first 120 days of his government.
Wednesday, May 7, 2025, marks exactly 120 days since President Mahama and his vice, Professor Naana Jane Opoku Agyemang – the first female vice president of Ghana- were sworn into office on January 7, 2025.
Mahama’s 120-day social contract on education
1. Convene a national consultative conference on education.
2. Implement the ‘No-Academic-Fee’ policy for all first-year students in public tertiary institutions.
3. Introduce Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disabilities.
4. Commence the distribution of free sanitary pads to female students in primary and secondary schools.
5. Lay before Parliament a Bill to streamline and prohibit political appointees from accessing government scholarship, etc.
Status after 120 days
1. Education Conference- National and regional conferences completed.
Outstanding: Final report to be submitted by next week.
Score: 18/20
2. No Academic Fee: Budget of GHC 499 million allocated. Implementation has commenced with programme launched and applications for reimbursement ongoing. Over 8,000 so far received for both No Academic Fee and Free Tertiary for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).
Outstanding: Disbursement yet to commence as students are now applying to undergo verification.
Score: 15/20
3. Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disabilities: Implementation has started. Application portal launched, with applications being received for refunds in the current academic year.
Outstanding: Disbursement yet to commence as students are now applying to undergo verification before disbursement.
Score: 15/20
4. Sanitary pads: Budget of GHC 292 million allocated. Programme has been launched with pilot distribution undertaken during the launch.
Outstanding: Full-scale distribution yet to commence, as schools just reopened 48 hours ago. However, Central, Greater Accra, and Western Ahafo have received supplies
Score: 15/20
5. Scholarships Bill before Cabinet. Eduwatch submitted its MEMO in April 2025.
Outstanding: Bill yet to hit Parliament.
Score: 18/20
In total, Africa Education Watch (EduWatch), an Education Policy Research and Advocacy Organization has rated President John Dramani Mahama’s administration 81% on the social contract on education promise.
