The World Bank has approved a US$300 million financing package to support Ghana’s Transformative Secondary Education for Access, Results and Relevance for Jobs (STARR‑J) Project.

The initiative is expected to improve secondary school infrastructure, expand access to quality education, and help phase out the double‑track system nationwide by 2027.

In a statement released, a key objective of the project is to support the Government’s commitment to ending the double‑track system in senior high schools across the country.

It said that, through targeted investments in educational infrastructure, improved learning conditions and enhanced system efficiency, the Government expects that by 2027 no secondary school in Ghana will be operating under the double‑track system.

According to the statement, the Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, stated that, “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.”

It noted that this 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.

The Ministry of Education further expressed its 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 continued support towards the transformation of Ghana’s education sector.

The STARR‑J Project reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to ensuring equitable access to quality secondary education and to equipping Ghanaian students with the knowledge and skills required to thrive in an increasingly competitive global economy.