GES reschedules reopening date for single-track SHSs

The Ghana Education Service has rescheduled the reopening date for single-track senior high schools.

Instead of reporting to school     today, March 29, 2025, students will now return to school on April 23, 2025.

This was contained in a circular dated March 27, 2025, to all regional directors of education signed by the Director of Schools and Instructions Division of the GES, Prince C. Agyeman-Duah, for the acting Director-General.

"By this letter, regional directors of education are requested to communicate this information to all heads of single-track senior high and senior high technical schools to inform parents/guardians and students to take note of the new date and prepare accordingly," the circular said.

Following their vacation on March 4, 2025, most schools were expected to reopen on March 29, 2025.

However, due to the two-day public holidays for the Eid-Ul-Fitr coming immediately after Ramadan, the reopening was rescheduled to Tuesday, April 1, 2025.

Holidays

A statement from the Ministry of the Interior, however, informed the public that Sunday, March 30, 2025 and Monday, March 31, 2025 marked Eid-Ul-Fitr, a statutory public holiday.

“However, since March 30, 2025 falls on a Sunday and in the interest of the public, the President of the Republic of Ghana, has by Executive Instrument, in accordance with Section 2 of the Public Holidays and Commemorative Days Act (Act 601) declared Monday, March 31, 2025 and Tuesday, April 1, 2025 as additional public holidays and should be observed as such throughout the country,” it said.

GES

When contacted, the Public Relations Unit of the GES, Cassandra Twum-Ampofo, confirmed the rescheduling of the reopening date from March 29, 2025, to April 23, 2025.

She explained that Monday and Tuesday had been declared as statutory holidays, and that with the break for Easter celebrations coming up from April 18-21, 2025, it would not be prudent to let students travel back and forth with various risks.

“In order not to have breaks and to ensure a smooth instructional period, management decided that we shift the calendar,” she said.

Asked whether there would be any kind of intervention for the students, especially those in final-year preparing for the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), Ms Twum Ampofo responded in the affirmative, adding that there was always an instructional hour added to make time for breaks of such nature.

She said the breaks were something that could not be avoided and that the Eid-Ul-Fitr and the Easter were religious occasions observed across the country.

“So, it is also not something new.

The only thing is that we didn't want the situation whereby when they come, just Monday, Tuesday, there's a holiday, and then, there is also Easter break,” she emphasised.

In the case of the double-track students, she said there was no problem with them and that they would be in school since the decision did not affect them.