Deputy Education Minister Dr. Clement Apaak has announced that of the total of 603,328 students who sat for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), 590,309 candidates qualified for placement into Senior High Schools (SHS), Senior High Technical Schools (SHTS), and Technical and Vocational Institutions (TVIs) across the country.
He disclosed this at a press conference held on Thursday, September 16, 2025, on behalf of Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu.
The Builsa South Member of Parliament described this as a remarkable milestone that reflects the collective progress in expanding access to secondary education.
According to him, out of the figure of qualified candidates, 483,800 candidates (82%) have been successfully placed.
He also announced that 107,509 could not be matched with their preferred schools due to the high demand for such schools in Category A.
“Of this figure, 248,038 are females (51.4%), and 234,783 are males (48.6%).
However, 107,509 candidates (18.2%) could not be matched with their initial school choices due to high demand for certain Category ‘A’ schools,” he said.
He said while access to secondary education is expanding, demand for some categories of schools is beyond the capacity of these schools.
He called for a collaborative effort aimed at strengthening our various secondary schools to improve quality so students who apply to those schools will have access to quality education regardless of their location.
“As a nation, we must acknowledge that while access to secondary education is expanding, the demand for certain top-tier schools remains higher than their available capacity. It is therefore important that we manage expectations and, more importantly, work together to strengthen all schools. Every Ghanaian child deserves quality education, no matter where they are placed.”
He further announced that the self-placement portal has been activated to allow those who were not placed to log onto the system and select from the available schools.
“To address this, the self-placement portal has been activated and is now live. All qualified candidates who were not automatically placed are encouraged to log onto the system and select from schools with available vacancies.
This year, as part of the Free SHS Programme, we are piloting 70 private SHSs. At the time of school selection, only 21 private schools were available, but I am pleased to inform you that all 70 private schools are now accessible on the portal, providing more opportunities for students.”
The Deputy Minister added that the total placement program covers 724 public SHSs/SHTSs, 233 TVIs, and 70 private SHSs under the pilot Free SHS Programme.
“In order to reduce the stress on parents and guardians, resolution centers have been set up at the district, regional and national levels i.e., GES/ TVET district, regional offices with the GNAT hall in Accra being the national resolution center,” he stated.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
