Mrs Sabah Zita Benson, Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, has called on the former Registrar of the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat, Dr Kingsley Agyemang, to own up to his recklessness following recent revelations about scholarship allocations under his tenure.
Zita Benson’s comments come after public concerns resurfaced when a group of Ghanaian PhD students studying in the United Kingdom petitioned UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to intervene in what they describe as a worsening financial crisis caused by unpaid scholarship funds from the Ghanaian government.
The students, numbering about 110 in their petition, appealed to Prime Minister Starmer’s office to engage Ghanaian authorities diplomatically to ensure that overdue payments are released.
Earlier, Dr Kingsley Agyemang dismissed allegations made by Sabah Zita Benson, accusing him of causing a £32 million debt that has left many Ghanaian students stranded.
Dr Agyemang insisted that the High Commissioner’s claims are misleading, politically motivated, and ignore the long-standing structural nature of the Secretariat’s financial obligations.
Dr Agyemang, who doubles as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Abuakwa South, revealed that he inherited liabilities of GH¢230 million in 2017, equivalent to about 54 million dollars, yet no student was ever sent home under his administration, but chose not to make it a public spectacle.
He stated that the Scholarships Secretariat traditionally carries forward debts because the academic year does not align with the government’s financial year, making it normal for liabilities to roll over.
“Scholarship debt is continual, and it moves according to the academic year. Because tuition schedules often extend beyond the financial year, there is always an existing liability. This is not new,” he stressed.
According to him, when he took office under the Nana Akufo-Addo administration, the President immediately moved to address the inherited debt in a diplomatic manner.
However, Zita Benson said the former Registrar of the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat left behind a £35 million debt, out of which £3 million has already been paid.
She indicated that several schools in the UK are still owed, with some arrears dating back to 2021.
In a Facebook post, Zita said “A debt of £35 million was left behind by Mr. Agyemang and his team at the National Scholarships Secretariat, and this is causing a lot of hardship for students here in the UK. In 2021, there was a debt of £1.23 million; in 2022–2023, he left a debt of £2.3 million; in the 2023–2024 academic year, he left £18 million; and £14 million for 2024–2025.
“He obviously wasn’t clearing these debts. This is a debt Mr. Agyemang accumulated over five years, from 2021 through to 2025. Sometimes you just have to take responsibility and admit that you were reckless.”
