Govt to allocate ¢1bn from GETFund to end Free SHS double-track

The Minister in Charge of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, says that the government will allocate one billion Ghana cedis from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) next year to phase out the double-track system in senior high schools.

Speaking during the commissioning of a new staff accommodation facility at Accra Girls’ Senior High School, the Education Minister said the funds would be included in the 2026 national budget.

The Minister of Education noted that the funds would be used to complete stalled projects, including classroom blocks and assembly halls, to ensure all students can be accommodated in a single, unified system.

“We remain committed to ending the double-track system as our contribution to improving the quality of senior high school education,” Mr. Iddrisu quoted President John Dramani Mahama as saying. “

Mr Haruna Iddrisu added, “He has directed the Minister of Finance to make an allocation of one billion Ghana cedis, dedicated to managing the transition and responding to the challenges of the transition.”

The Sector Minister for Education added that the central government will explore and implement additional measures, such as digital solutions, to expand access to quality education.

“Free Senior High School has come to stay,” he said, adding, “His administration would work to enhance the program by investing in infrastructure and improving literacy and numeracy rates across the country.”

The government’s plan to end the double-track system follows the Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu’s comment that the double-track system introduced by the erstwhile Akufo-Addo government has had a negative impact on the country’s education.

Speaking to the journalists, he said the double-track system, introduced to ease congestion in Senior High Schools (SHSs), has negatively affected learning outcomes by reducing contact hours and study time for students.

The Minister for Education said the central government is working to phase out the double-track system in Senior High Schools (SHSs) through major investments in infrastructure, enhanced digital learning support,

“The double-track system has impacted negatively on the quality and outcomes of education under the Free SHS policy. Students have fewer contact hours and less study time, which affects their performance.

Government’s commitment to ending the system can only be realised at three levels: expanding infrastructure, strengthening digital resources in schools, and allowing private SHSs to absorb qualified students to ease the pressure,” he said at a media briefing.

To oversee the transition, the government has set up an 11-member committee to guide the reversal from double-track to single-track in SHSs and Senior High Technical Schools (SHTSs).

The double-track transition committee, chaired by Prof. Peter Grant of the University of Cape Coast (UCC), has been tasked to review the 2024/2025 academic calendar and propose a roadmap for the phase-out.

The members include Prof. Godwin Awabil, University of Cape Coast (UCC), Prof. Samuel A. Atintono, PRINCOF, Prof. Smile Gavua Dzisi (Mrs.), Deputy Director-General (Management Service), GES, Dr. Munawaru Issahaque, Deputy Director-General (Quality and Access), Ghana Education Service (GES)

Others are D. W. Agbenyo, WAEC, Rosemond Wilson (PhD), WAEC, Mr. Augustus Agyemfra, CODE, Mr. David Odjidja, CHASS, Addo Nicholas Nii Kpakpoe, COHBS, and Prince Charles Agyemang-Duah, Schools & Instructions Division, GES.