The Ministry of Education is set to establish a technical committee to conduct a comprehensive review of the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) immediately following the conclusion of the 2026 Senior High School placement exercise.
The review will begin after the current placement exercise has been completed, the ministry said in a statement signed by Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu on Tuesday, September 15.
A Technical Working Committee will be established to examine the different stages of the Computerised School Selection and Placement System and identify areas requiring improvement.
The ministry said it welcomed the bishops’ intervention and accepted that the placement system must continue to evolve if it is to retain the confidence of students, parents and schools.
Merit must come before protocol
The ministry maintained that CSSPS is fundamentally merit-based and that “merit takes precedence over protocol” when qualified candidates are assigned to secondary schools.
Under the approved framework, placements are expected to reflect candidates’ results, school choices, programme selections and the spaces available in participating institutions.
The planned committee will assess whether the system is meeting those standards. It will also recommend changes intended to make school placement more credible, efficient and responsive to public concerns.
The announcement does not alter placements already issued during the ongoing exercise. Legitimate complaints will continue to be handled through the established resolution channels.
Ministry warns against placement payments
The ministry also reminded parents and candidates that school placement is free. No official, intermediary or third party is authorised to demand money to secure a school or change an existing placement.
Parents with credible evidence of payment demands involving the ministry, Ghana Education Service, CSSPS Secretariat or Ghana Technical and Vocational Education and Training Service have been encouraged to report the matter to law-enforcement agencies.
The ministry said the identities of people who submit such evidence would be protected.
Public confidence in CSSPS has often been tested by complaints about popular schools, alleged protocol placements and people claiming they can manipulate results for money.
The committee’s work will therefore be judged by more than its final report. Parents will want to see whether its recommendations produce a placement system they can follow, question and trust.
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