Minister for Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, speaking at the summit
The Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, has disclosed that over 500,000 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) graduates have been placed in various Senior High Schools as well as Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Schools across the country.
He explained that this was done by the Computer Selection and School placement system. He added that “enrolment into SHS and TVET institutions has increased significantly following the introduction of the Free SHS policy”.
The Education Minister announced this at the 2022 Presidential BECE awards held in Accra. The awards saw 72 students who excelled in the 2021/2022 BECE presented with certificates of honour.
Since its inception in 1993, annual awards are presented to young brilliant students between 14 and 19 years of age from all regions in the country. Selection of the awardees is based on their exceptional academic performance in the BECE.
Dr Yaw Adutwum also stressed that the Free SHS policy has opened many opportunities for children to attain secondary education, irrespective of the financial backgrounds of their parents as well as location, religious, ethnic, political or other affiliations,
“The Free SHS programme has sent many students to various high schools in the country. When it started in 2017, there were 830,000 students enrolled in high schools across the country. This year alone, we have a record of over 500,000 students placed in senior high schools across the country, and we are waiting for all of them to enroll. That tells you the progress we have made these past few years,” he stated.
Dr. Adutwum, who is also the Member of Parliament for Bosomtwe, was upbeat that all the placed students will enroll in their chosen schools.
Improving education
For his part, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said the government will continue to implement policies and programmes geared at making education better in Ghana.
He reminded students to uphold high moral values in their educational endeavors since education remains a topmost priority for his government.
“Know that you can go as far as you want by remaining diligent, hardworking and holding on to a strong moral base,” the President told the students.
The West African Examination Council (WAEC) released the BECE results on January 25, 2023. According to WAEC, out of the 547,329 registered candidates, 538,399 candidates qualified to be placed.
A total of 372,780, representing 69.24 per cent of the qualified students were automatically placed in one of their choices.
Additional 165, 619 candidates who qualified but could not match with any of their choices went through the self-placement exercise.
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