The government is investing GH¢3 billion under the Strategic Secondary Education Transformation and Reform for Jobs (STAR-J) project to address infrastructure gaps, ease congestion and improve the quality of secondary education across Ghana. The initiative is expected to support the government’s target of ending the double-track system in Senior High Schools by 2027.
President John Dramani Mahama announced the investment at Paga in the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region when he commissioned an E-Block facility for Paga Senior High School. He said the expansion of infrastructure would allow students to attend school at the same time, increase teacher-student contact hours and create better conditions for improved performance in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
The President said the government’s decision to phase out the double-track system was informed partly by concerns over reduced contact hours between teachers and students under the existing arrangement.
He explained that the STAR-J project would also facilitate the construction of 30 new E-Block Senior High Schools, particularly in densely populated communities where demand for secondary education was high.
According to President Mahama, the government has also allocated funds in the 2026 Budget to complete 30 abandoned E-Block projects initiated during his previous administration.
He said completing the abandoned facilities was necessary to protect taxpayers’ investments and ensure that resources already committed to the projects were not wasted.
“Any project into which government has sunk money already, if you don’t finish it, it is a waste of the taxpayers’ money. And so, we are going to finish the E-Blocks that we started,” he said.
Paga Senior High School is among the facilities being completed under the programme. President Mahama noted that students had previously been compelled to use parts of the school under difficult conditions.
He consequently directed the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to accelerate the provision of furniture and other equipment to enable the school to operate fully.
The President also announced plans to convert Paga Senior High School into a boarding institution from the 2027 academic year.
The planned expansion will include the construction of dormitories for boys and girls, as well as a dining hall to support the boarding arrangement.
In addition, President Mahama promised the school a new 60-seater bus, indicating that the vehicle would be provided before the completion of the boarding facilities.
He challenged the management of Paga Senior High School to use the improved infrastructure to raise academic standards and transform the institution into a centre of excellence.
“I want to see that the children here pass 100 per cent,” President Mahama said.
The government says the broader investment in secondary education is intended not only to expand access but also to create an environment in which students receive adequate instructional time and improved facilities to enhance learning outcomes.
