The Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare has advised the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) will prioritise supporting individuals who cannot afford fees for tertiary education rather than adopting an open system.

This comment follows John Mahama's plan that first-year tertiary students will not pay fees.

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According to him, this is part of a government initiative to lessen the burden on parents financing their children's education.

“We will implement a no-fees stress programme to alleviate the financial burden on parents and students in financing tertiary education. We will implement a no academic fees policy at the university for level 100 students,” he said.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story on August 12, Mr Asare said there should be a broader focus on what can be done to keep less privileged students in school even after the first year, and what can be done to support those who cannot afford it.

He advised that “We must have a targeted regime of identifying students who are genuinely unable to afford the cost of tertiary and give them even more support than the waiver of academic facility user fee so that they can enter and complete."