UK Scholarship Payments for Ghanaian PhD Students: High Commissioner Appeals for Patience

By: Franklin ASARE-DONKOH Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Madam Sabah Zita Benson, has appealed to Ghanaian PhD students in the UK to exercise patience as efforts continue to clear outstanding scholarship payments, including school fees and stipends. According to the High Commissioner, her office is working closely with the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat to facilitate the release of funds and assured affected students that payments would be made once resources are available. “They should be patient. I am sure that by the end of this quarter, we should have some of these things resolved. I have been following up with the Scholarship Secretariat personally, and when some money is released, we will be able to pay out some of these debts,” she said. She made the comments in an interview with Accra-based JoyNews TV, addressing the growing frustration among Ghanaian PhD students in the UK who haven’t received their scholarship packages. According to reports, some beneficiaries have gone without financial support for more than a year. The situation has left several students facing eviction from hostels and relying on food banks to meet basic needs. Madam Zita Benson described the situation as “worrying.” She explained that during her engagements with the Secretariat, she was informed that funding delays are linked to budgetary releases from the Ministry of Finance. “They (the Scholarship Secretariat), once the Ministry of Finance releases their budget in the first quarter, will send us some money so that we will be able to settle some of these debts,” she stated. High Commissioner Benson urged the students to remain calm and assured them that the government is taking steps to fulfill its obligations. More stories here