By Christine Naadu Lartey
Accra, Jan. 23, GNA – A cross-section of National Service Scheme (NSS) personnel are appealing to the government and the National Service Authority (NSA), to expedite the payment of their outstanding allowances, citing growing financial hardships.
They said the persistent delays had compelled many of them to depend heavily on parents and guardians for their basic needs, a situation they described as unsustainable, emotionally and financially burdensome.
Ms Delali Mensah, a national service personnel member at Accra, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the delay in the payment of their allowances had left her entirely dependent on her parents for transportation, internet data, and general welfare.
She said the situation was placing considerable strain on her family’s finances and urged the NSA to prioritise the release of their allowances.
Another service person, Ms Araba Thompson, shared similar concerns, explaining that she had no independent source of income and was being fully supported by her parents throughout the service period.
Ms Ella Adu, another NSS personnel, said that although she operated a small beauty product importation business, the modest profits were only sufficient to cover her transportation costs, leaving relatives to support her feeding and other essential needs.
Ms Olivia Sena highlighted the difficulty she was facing in meeting rent and daily upkeep expenses and appealed to the NSA and the Ministry of Finance to release at least one month’s arrears, to ease the pressure on families supporting service personnel.
Mr Samuel Nsiah, based in Accra, said he had resorted to working part-time at his mother’s restaurant to supplement his income, as he otherwise had no means of self-support.
The service personnel collectively called on the NSA and the government to take urgent steps to clear the payment backlog, to enable them to carry out their national duties with ease, noting that they were yet to receive any allowance payment since they commenced in November 2025.
GNA
Edited by Laudia Anyorkor Nunoo/ Christabel Addo
