The minister of education says measures have been instituted to ensure the double track system is phased out in 2025
Government is poised to phase out the double track system for Senior High Schools across the country in the 2025 academic year, Dr Yaw Adutwum, the education minister, has said.
Late last year, William Akwasi Sabi, then deputy minister of monitoring and evaluation told Asaase Radio that government was hopeful of phasing out the double track system for SHSs within two years.
However, speaking with Nana Yaa Mensah on The Asaase Breakfast Show on Wednesday 9 June 2021, Adutwum said the target is now 2025.
“The president made the promise in Tamale, it has been I think about three years now, so that puts you at two to four for the double track system to be eliminated and we are on track to that elimination agenda by the president,” he said.
Adutwum added: “In academic year 2025 schools are going off the track and the good news is that there will be new schools to accommodate more and then existing schools would have had capacity to accommodate more.”
Government in September 2017 began the implementation of this flagship Free Senior High School (Free SHS) programme with an initial government fund of US$138 million.
Statistics from the Ghana Education Service revealed in March 2020 there were 404,856 children enrolled in state-run senior high schools and benefiting from free education.
Expenditure on Free SHS
Meanwhile, Dr Adutwum said government has so far spent over GHC 7 billion on the implementation of the flagship Free SHS programme since 2017.
“In 2017 we spent GHC 480 million. In 2018 GHC 1,137,861, 816. In 2019 1,682, 641, 924 and the following year there will be adjustment because of the COVID 19 but the actual budget was 2, 429, 257, 748 which would be revised because of the COVID-19 and the academic year changes. And this year it is 1,174,021, 968,” he said.
He added: “In all we have spent to date GHC 7,703, 783, 456 and that is the data that was given to me by my chief director.”
Source: Ashantibiz
