The Ghana Education Service (GES) says the 2026 Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) has recorded a significant improvement in automatic placements, with 527,000 students securing school placements so far.
The figure represents an increase from the 483,000 students automatically placed in 2025 and 447,000 recorded in 2024, according to the Head of Public Relations at the GES, Daniel Fenyi.
Mr Fenyi said the improvement was evidence that the placement process had become more efficient, despite concerns raised by some parents and guardians over difficulties encountered at resolution centres.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on Monday, he said the number of students who have so far been placed through automatic and self-placement channels represented about 93 to 95 per cent of the total applicants.
“So if you ask me what changed, what changed is a significant improvement in the automatic placements that were done this year,” he said.
He said the improvement was also reflected in the sharp reduction in the number of students having to rely on self-placement.
According to him, about 53,000 students had resorted to self-placement as of September 10, compared with 107,000 at the same stage last year.
Automatic placements currently account for about 87 per cent of the placements, while self-placement accounts for the remaining 13 per cent.
Mr Fenyi therefore rejected suggestions that the challenges being experienced at some resolution centres amounted to a nationwide placement crisis.
“I want to emphasise that if you have a system that has been able to place about 95% of the students through automatic and self-placement put together, you cannot, by any stretch of imagination, call such a 95% efficiency a crisis,” he said.
He also dismissed concerns that the difficulties were the result of inadequate spaces in senior high schools.
“In terms of spaces, we have well about 800,000 spaces for 600,000, a little over 600,000 students who want to pursue senior high education,” he said.
The GES has established 17 resolution centres across the country to address technical problems, human errors and individual placement concerns.
Mr Fenyi said 15 of the centres were operating smoothly, while Accra and the Ashanti Region were experiencing the greatest pressure.
He cautioned against using the situation in the two regions to draw conclusions about the performance of the placement system across the country.
“Accra is not Ghana,” he said, arguing that the large numbers of parents and guardians seeking assistance at the Accra resolution centre should not be interpreted as a reflection of a nationwide breakdown.
The GES, he said, remains committed to resolving outstanding placement cases through the designated centres.
“So let me assuage the fears of stakeholders who might be following these placement issues critically. That if you have 17 places that are addressing issues, and 15 of them are running efficiently, you cannot say that the resolution centres or the placement itself has issues,” he said.
