The Director-General of the Ghana Scholarship Authority (GSA), Alex Kwaku Asafo-Agyei, has dismissed allegations that foreign nationals are benefiting from Ghana’s scholarship programme, calling them misleading and politically motivated.
In a Facebook post, Mr Asafo-Agyei insisted that reports claiming certain beneficiaries were Canadian citizens were false, stating, “The claim that the beneficiaries in question are Canadian citizens is false. The individuals being referenced are Ghanaians by birth and parentage,” he clarified.
According to him, Ghanaian citizenship was the primary requirement for scholarships, and the beneficiaries meet this criterion. “The attempt to portray them as ‘Canadians benefiting from Ghanaian scholarships’ is therefore deliberately misleading and unsupported by facts,” he added.
Mr Asafo-Agyei clarified that the scholarship scheme is not limited to “needy but brilliant” students, explaining that the Authority operates a three-tier framework: financial need, national priority programs, and merit-based selection. “The Ghana Scholarship Authority operates a three-tier framework for the award of scholarships: financial need (needy but brilliant), national priority for programmes critical to Ghana’s development, and merit-based selection,” he said.
He emphasised that it’s inaccurate to suggest only financially disadvantaged students qualify, saying, “It is therefore intellectually dishonest to create the impression that any beneficiary who does not fall within the ‘needy but brilliant’ category is undeserving.”
For the 2026 cycle, 5,000 scholarships have been earmarked, with 2,000 reserved for the “needy but brilliant” category. The remaining scholarships are allocated based on merit and national priority.
Mr Asafo-Agyei stressed that the Authority doesn’t discriminate based on family background, social status, or perceived connections. “The duty of the Authority is straightforward – to determine whether an applicant is Ghanaian and whether the applicant satisfies the established selection criteria,” he noted.
He also rejected corruption claims, saying, “Allegations of corruption must be backed by credible evidence and presented to the appropriate investigative authorities rather than propagated through speculation.”
Reaffirming his commitment to transparency, Mr Asafo-Agyei said, “Let me state unequivocally that, so long as I remain the Director-General of the Ghana Scholarship Authority, neither my integrity nor the well-redeemed reputation of the Authority will be compromised.”
He added that scholarships are awarded based on merit and fairness, saying, “The days when scholarships were awarded to the politically connected are far behind us.” The Authority will publish remaining lists of beneficiaries from 2016 to 2024 to enhance transparency.
