The Ghana National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS) has raised urgent concern over the Computerized School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) announcement that 54,985 candidates who sat for the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) failed to qualify for placement into Senior High School, proposing that its existing Memorandum of Understanding with government be activated to absorb the affected students without delay.
GNACOPS described the figure as a matter of urgent national concern, stressing that behind each unplaced candidate lies a child whose academic journey now risks stalling, and a family whose hopes for that child’s continued education hang in the balance.
GNACOPS was direct in characterising the scale of the problem, insisting that Ghana cannot allow nearly 55,000 young people to be left without a clear educational pathway forward.
The Council framed the matter not as a routine administrative shortfall, but as a systemic gap requiring urgent intervention before the situation compounds further.
“We cannot, as a country, allow nearly 55,000 young Ghanaians to be left without a pathway forward.”
GNACOPS
Existing MoU Presented as Ready-Made Solution
Central to GNACOPS’ response was a reminder to the Ministry of Education that an existing Memorandum of Understanding between government and the Council already provides the framework and infrastructure needed to resolve the placement gap immediately.
Under this arrangement, 85 private Senior High Schools currently participate in delivering the Free SHS policy, placing them in a position to absorb unplaced candidates without requiring any new negotiation process.
According to GNACOPS, these 85 schools currently have vacancies and have demonstrated the capacity to accommodate candidates who did not qualify for placement in this year’s CSSPS exercise.
The Council argued that what is required is not a fresh agreement, but a deliberate government decision to activate and expand utilisation of the existing partnership.
“What is needed now is not a new agreement, but the political will to direct these candidates to the vacancies that already exist within the partnership.”
GNACOPS
Commitments From Member Institutions
GNACOPS outlined a series of specific commitments its member institutions stand ready to fulfil should government activate the arrangement.
These include admitting affected candidates into accredited private SHS programmes across the country, providing structured remedial and bridging support to strengthen foundational academic gaps ahead of WASSCE preparation.
Delivering rigorous and quality-assured instruction geared toward strong examination outcomes, and guiding successful candidates toward eventual tertiary admission and progression.
The Council maintained that its private schools, already operating under the Free SHS policy through the existing MoU, have consistently demonstrated the infrastructure, academic expertise and operational capacity needed to deliver on these commitments at scale.
Framing The Case for Urgency
GNACOPS stressed that every academic year that passes without resolving the placement gap represents lost time that cannot be recovered for the affected students, reinforcing the urgency behind its appeal to government.
The Council noted that because the MoU and its network of 85 participating schools are already operational, it stands ready to mobilise its member schools immediately upon receiving a directive from government, working in coordination with the Ghana Education Service and CSSPS to ensure no candidate is left behind due to constraints within the public school placement system.
“Because the MoU and the 85 participating schools are already in place, GNACOPS stands ready to mobilise its member schools immediately upon government’s directive,”
GNACOPS
Request For Engagement with the Minister
In closing, GNACOPS reiterated its willingness to meet with the Minister of Education and other relevant stakeholders at the earliest possible opportunity, with the aim of finalising the specific modalities required to absorb the affected candidates under the existing collaborative framework.
With the placement gap now publicly quantified and a concrete proposal on the table, attention will likely turn to how quickly the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service respond to GNACOPS’ appeal, and whether the existing Free SHS partnership with private schools is formally expanded to accommodate the tens of thousands of candidates currently left without a confirmed pathway into Senior High School.
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