The Ghana Education Service (GES) has announced a new reopening date for single-track senior high schools (SHSs), shifting the original March 29, 2025, schedule to April 23, 2025.
This decision, communicated through a circular dated March 27, 2025, was addressed to all regional education directors. The letter, signed by Prince C. Agyeman-Duah on behalf of the Acting Director-General of the GES, urged regional directors to ensure that school heads, parents, guardians, and students are duly informed of the adjustment.
Initially, the reopening was pushed from March 29 to April 1, 2025, due to the Eid-Ul-Fitr public holidays on March 30 and 31. However, after further review, authorities deemed it necessary to extend the date to April 23 to prevent unnecessary travel disruptions for students, especially with the Easter holidays approaching soon after.
The Ministry of the Interior explained that since Eid-Ul-Fitr falls on Sunday, March 30, President John Dramani Mahama had declared Monday, March 31, and Tuesday, April 1, as additional public holidays. Given this, the GES determined that reopening schools immediately before or after these holidays would create logistical challenges and safety concerns for students traveling long distances.
Cassandra Twum-Ampofo, spokesperson for the GES, emphasized that the decision was made with students’ safety and instructional effectiveness in mind.
“Reopening schools right before public holidays would mean students travel back and forth unnecessarily. To ensure they have a stable academic period, management decided to make this adjustment,” she explained.
Regarding concerns over the impact on final-year students preparing for the 2025 WASSCE, Twum-Ampofo assured that additional instructional hours would be scheduled to compensate for any lost time.
She also clarified that the adjustment applies only to single-track SHSs, while double-track students will continue their academic activities as originally planned.
