The World Bank has approved a $300 million financing package to support the government’s efforts to transition away from the double-track secondary school system, the Ministry of Education has announced.

The funding will support the Transformative Secondary Education for Access, Results, and Relevance for Jobs (STARR-J) project, which is designed to expand access to secondary education, improve quality, and address infrastructure gaps linked to the Free Senior High School policy.

A key objective of the project is to help the government end the double-track system in Senior High Schools nationwide by 2027.

In a statement, the Ministry of Education said the intervention would focus on infrastructure expansion, improved learning conditions and system efficiency to ensure a smoother academic calendar across second-cycle institutions.

The Ministry described the approval as a major step in strengthening Ghana’s secondary education system and preparing students for the labour market.

“This project is a major investment in Ghana’s growing youthful population and a strategic contribution to the country’s long-term human capital development and global competitiveness,” Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu said.

He said the project would expand learning opportunities, improve school conditions and better align secondary education with skills required in the labour market.

“It will help expand learning opportunities, improve school conditions, better align secondary education with the skills demanded by the labour market, and, more importantly, respond to the infrastructure deficit associated with expanded access to Free Secondary Education,” he added.

The Ministry of Education expressed appreciation to the World Bank Country Director, Robert Taliercio O’Brien, the World Bank education team, and the Ministry of Finance, led by Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, for their support in securing the funding.

According to the Ministry, the STARR-J project reinforces the government’s commitment to ensuring equitable access to quality secondary education and equipping students with the skills needed to compete in a global economy.

If successfully implemented, the programme is expected to support the full phase-out of the double-track system by 2027, which has been introduced to manage increased enrolment under the Free SHS policy.