The government is preparing to significantly expand the number of Category A Senior High Schools (SHSs) in the country in response to the growing gap between demand for elite schools and available places under the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS).
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu said 20 existing Category B schools would be upgraded to Category A, while 10 new model Category A schools would also be constructed, taking the number of institutions targeted for the upgrade and expansion to 30.
The initiative, he said, is aimed at creating additional opportunities for students seeking admission to Category A schools, which continue to attract exceptionally high demand following the introduction of the Free SHS programme.
Mr Iddrisu disclosed the plans during an interview on TV3 on September 11, 2026, saying the government had secured $300 million from the World Bank under the STARR-J initiative to support infrastructure expansion in the secondary education sector.
“We are going to convert 20 Category B schools into A and we will build 10 new model Category A schools in the country,” he said.
The Minister also revealed that he had directed the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to allocate between GH¢250 million and GH¢300 million in its 2027 funding formula to support infrastructure expansion in 10 existing Category A schools.
Severe demand-capacity gap
According to Mr Iddrisu, the scale of the challenge was demonstrated by the 2026 school placement exercise, in which about 328,000 students selected Category A schools.
However, only about 76,000 vacancies were available in those schools, leaving a substantial gap between the number of students seeking placement and available spaces.
He said the situation had intensified competition for Category A schools and placed additional pressure on the CSSPS, as thousands of students who could not secure their preferred schools had to consider alternative options.
The Minister therefore argued that simply improving the placement process would not be enough to address the problem, stressing the need to expand the physical capacity of the secondary school system.
He said increasing the number of Category A schools, alongside upgrading infrastructure in existing institutions, would provide more placement opportunities and help absorb the growing number of students entering secondary education.
The expansion is expected to form part of broader efforts by the government to ensure that increased access to secondary education under Free SHS is matched by adequate infrastructure and school capacity.
