Kofi Asare Urges Parents to Adjust Expectations Amid 2025 BECE Placement Challenges
Kofi Asare, Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, has called on parents to temper their expectations regarding the 2025 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) school placement process, emphasizing that competition for popular schools, not a lack of spaces, is driving frustrations.
His comments come as hundreds of parents and students flooded the GNAT Hall in Accra on Tuesday to address issues like misplaced postings and unfulfilled school choices.
Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show, Asare clarified that Ghana has sufficient capacity to absorb all 590,000 BECE candidates, with over 700 public Senior High Schools (SHS), 233 technical and vocational institutions, and 70 private SHSs piloted under the Free SHS programme. However, he noted, “The issue is that while the country has spaces in our secondary schools, the spaces do not meet the full expectations, tastes, and choices of parents and, by extension, the candidates.”
Asare explained that placement is merit-based and competitive, particularly for Category A and B schools like Labone SHS, where grades and programme choices (e.g., science) determine outcomes. “Your chance of going there is not a matter of choosing but also making a competitive grade,” he said, adding that preferences for boarding or day status further intensify competition. He criticized the “over-democratisation” of expectations, urging parents to patronize all schools across categories to ensure equitable access.
With 483,800 of 590,309 qualified candidates already placed (82%), and 107,509 using the self-placement portal due to unmet initial choices, Asare stressed that resolution starts with realistic parental expectations.
The Ghana Education Service has set up resolution centers, with GNAT Hall as the national hub, to address complaints, reinforcing that placement remains free.
