By Iddi Yire
Accra, Sept. 12, GNA – President John Dramani Mahama has reiterated his administration’s commitment to phase out the Double-Track System in the nation’s senior high schools (SHSs).
He said by the end of 2027, no school in Ghana should still be operating the double-track system, assuring that all students would attend school and vacate at the same time.
The President said this would increase contact hours between teachers and learners and improve educational outcomes.
President Mahama made the remarks during a Citizens’ Engagement held in Wa at the climax of his two-day Resetting Ghana Tour of the Upper West Region.
He noted that the Government had secured a 300-million-dollar facility from the World Bank to support efforts to eliminate the double-track system.
Touching on challenges in the education sector, President Mahama said his administration inherited a situation in which the Free Senior High School programme had been introduced without a dedicated funding source.
“As a result, schools depended on delayed budget releases every year. Headmasters constantly complained about inadequate funding and shortages of food,” he said.
He said some schools had to feed students with whatever food items were available because supplies arrived irregularly.
The President said the Government had since established dedicated funding for SHSs and student feeding programmes.
“Today, we have established dedicated funding for Senior High Schools. We have also created dedicated financing for student feeding, and complaints from headmasters have reduced considerably,” he said.
President Mahama also commented on the recent West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, which he said had generated considerable public discussion.
“I do not wish to debate the statistics today because the figures are available for everyone to examine,” he said.
The President expressed satisfaction that the results reflected the genuine performance of students, attributing the development partly to improved invigilation and a reduction in organised examination malpractice.
“The era when students felt entitled to leaked answers and attacked teachers who enforced discipline must remain behind us,” President Mahama said.
“Our children must succeed because they have learned, and our teachers must teach with integrity,” he added.
GNA
Edited by Lydia Kukua Asamoah