President John Mahama has announced plans by the government to construct 16 new senior high schools (SHSs) as part of measures to reduce congestion in existing schools and bring an end to Ghana’s double-track system by 2027.
The President announced on Friday, September 11, 2026, when he inspected ongoing Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) projects at Han Senior High School (HAN SHS).
According to President Mahama, the government has secured approval for a $300 million World Bank facility to support the expansion of school infrastructure and help eliminate the double-track system.
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He explained that the facility would be used partly to expand existing senior high schools that continue to operate under the double-track arrangement.
The expansion, he said, would provide enough classrooms and other infrastructure to allow students to attend school at the same time instead of being divided into separate tracks.
“For the schools that are still running double-track, we’re going to expand the facility so that all the children can go to school at the same time,” he said.
President Mahama said the government would also construct 16 brand-new secondary schools under the programme to ease pressure on existing institutions.
“Under that project too, we’re building 16 brand-new secondary schools so that we can ease the congestion in the existing schools,” he said.
The planned construction forms part of the government’s broader infrastructure intervention aimed at increasing capacity within Ghana’s second-cycle education system.
President Mahama said the government is targeting the completion of the required infrastructure by the end of 2027, with the ultimate objective of ensuring that no Ghanaian child remains on the double-track system.
“And so these projects will go on, and we hope that by the end of 2027, no Ghanaian child should be on a double-track system,” he said.
Under the proposed arrangement, students would attend classes at the same time and follow a common academic calendar.
“Everybody goes to school at the same time, studies, and closes at the same time,” President Mahama said.
The President said ending the double-track system would have benefits beyond reducing overcrowding in schools.
He explained that the return to a single-track system would increase the amount of time teachers spend directly engaging with students, potentially improving teaching and learning outcomes.
“We believe that will increase the contact hours between the teachers and the students, and it will help to improve their performance when eventually they write their WASSCE exam,” he said.
President Mahama expressed optimism that the investment in educational infrastructure would therefore improve access to quality learning environments while also contributing to better academic performance.
The government’s plan to construct the 16 new senior high schools, alongside the expansion of existing institutions, is expected to play a key role in efforts to address infrastructure deficits and gradually eliminate the double-track arrangement across the country by 2027.