Ghana Secures $300m from World Bank to Elevate Category B and C Schools – Haruna Iddrisu

The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has announced that the World Bank is providing the Ministry of Education with $300 million to support ongoing reforms aimed at upgrading several schools. The initiative will see selected category ‘C’ schools elevated to category ‘B’, and category ‘B’ schools upgraded to category ‘A’.

He made this disclosure during an interview on TV3 on Thursday, March 5, noting that the financial support forms a key part of the government’s broader push to strengthen the education sector.

Haruna Iddrisu emphasized that the Ministry of Education and the current administration intend to make substantial investments in basic education. He explained that prioritizing early-level learning is essential for building a strong educational foundation.

“Globally, if you want to strengthen your education system, you start by investing in basic education. The President highlighted this during the State of the Nation Address. Government is now realigning funding to channel more resources into the basic level,” he said.

Addressing the Free SHS programme, the minister criticized the previous Akufo-Addo administration for rolling out Free SHS without first providing adequate school infrastructure to handle the surge in student enrolment. The programme was introduced in 2017.

He stated that expanding classroom space and facilities should have been a priority before implementing Free SHS, noting that the sector struggled due to limited infrastructure.

Haruna Iddrisu also outlined new measures planned by the Mahama administration regarding inclusive education. He explained that government intends to introduce free education for all persons with special needs, supply essential assistive devices, and increase the feeding grant from GHS 8 to GHS 15.

Touching on the broader education reforms, the minister said the country must gradually shift away from widespread boarding school dependence. He noted that reforms will focus on promoting day-schooling in rural and peri-urban communities, while boarding schools in urban areas will be scaled down where necessary.