Public Agenda

The Public Agenda in a lead story headlined: ?Basic Education crisis: FCUBE money lies idle...World Bank threatens?, says a strange scenario is unfolding as basic education wallows in crisis even as badly needed funds made available by the Word Bank lie unutilised and attract interest. According to the paper, differences between the Word bank and the Ghana Government over the implementation of the Basic Education Sector Improvement Programme(BESIP)have led the Bank to threaten cancellation of the credit facility. The Public Agenda quotes the World Bank as saying BESIP, the government?s programme aimed at reforming basic education, is two years behind schedule and the agreed Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE) programme targets. The paper says the Bank, in a statement that amounts to an ultimatum, proposed a restructuring of BESIP ad an appraisal of the restructuring proposals not later than March 30, this year, when the two parties are to meet. ?Should it not be possible to meet this deadline, we would have to take steps to proceed towards suspension of disbursement and cancellation of the proceeds of the credit?, the Public Agenda quotes a draft document of the World Bank as indicating. The Bank document, says the paper, expressed concern about the slow pace of the disbursement of funds, saying as at last September, there was an u undisbursed balance of $44 million in the Bank?s credit account for BESIP.

The Public Agenda in a lead story headlined: ?Basic Education crisis: FCUBE money lies idle...World Bank threatens?, says a strange scenario is unfolding as basic education wallows in crisis even as badly needed funds made available by the Word Bank lie unutilised and attract interest. According to the paper, differences between the Word bank and the Ghana Government over the implementation of the Basic Education Sector Improvement Programme(BESIP)have led the Bank to threaten cancellation of the credit facility. The Public Agenda quotes the World Bank as saying BESIP, the government?s programme aimed at reforming basic education, is two years behind schedule and the agreed Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE) programme targets. The paper says the Bank, in a statement that amounts to an ultimatum, proposed a restructuring of BESIP ad an appraisal of the restructuring proposals not later than March 30, this year, when the two parties are to meet. ?Should it not be possible to meet this deadline, we would have to take steps to proceed towards suspension of disbursement and cancellation of the proceeds of the credit?, the Public Agenda quotes a draft document of the World Bank as indicating. The Bank document, says the paper, expressed concern about the slow pace of the disbursement of funds, saying as at last September, there was an u undisbursed balance of $44 million in the Bank?s credit account for BESIP.