Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu, says the government has secured $300 million in funding from the World Bank to expand infrastructure in Category A schools and upgrade lower-category institutions across the country.
According to the Minister, part of the funding will also be used to upgrade Category C schools to Category B, while additional investments will strengthen facilities in top-tier secondary schools.
Speaking exclusively on TV3’s New Day, Mr. Iddrisu stressed that improving education outcomes requires stronger investment in the foundational levels of the sector.
“Everywhere in the world, if you want to get your education right, you must invest more in basic education. President hinted at that in the State of the Nation Address,” he said.
He explained that government policy will now prioritize funding for basic education as part of a broader reform agenda.
“So now government policy will realign investment and allocation of financial resources more in favour of basic education.”
Concerns Over Free SHS Infrastructure
The Education Minister also raised concerns about infrastructure challenges associated with the implementation of the Free SHS Policy, saying the programme was rolled out without adequate expansion of facilities.
“Yes, the previous administration launched the Free Senior High School programme but failed to provide for expanded infrastructure by way of classrooms, lecture theatres and ICT facilities to accommodate the exponential increase in numbers,” he stated.
Contracts Expected Mid-Year
Mr. Iddrisu said government has already begun engagement with the World Bank and expects procurement processes to start soon.
“Thankfully, President Mahama and the Ministry of Finance, with the support of the World Bank, are providing $300 million to convert a number of Category C schools to B, a number of Category B schools to A and expand infrastructure in Category A schools,” he explained.
He added that contracts are expected to be awarded by the middle of the year.
“We have started engagement with the World Bank. By about May or June we should award contracts to begin work so that within a year we should be able to expand access to Free Senior High School.”
Funding for Student Feeding
The Minister further assured that funding has been secured to ensure students under the Free SHS programme do not face feeding challenges.
“The novelty is that no student in senior high school under Free SHS is struggling to get food to eat because the President directed that should absorb the cost. About 4.2 billion cedis has been made available to support Free Senior High School,” he said.
The planned infrastructure expansion is expected to ease pressure on schools while improving access and learning conditions across the country.
