Also known as: Mr Iddrisu · Mr. Iddrisu · Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu · Mr Haruna Iddrisu · Minister Iddrisu · Hon. Haruna Iddrisu · Minister for Education Haruna Iddrisu · the Honourable Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu · Latif Iddrisu · Farouk Iddrisu · Minister Haruna · Honourable Haruna Iddrisu · Hon. Iddrisu
Haruna Iddrisu — Ghana's Education Minister addressing school placement challenges and curriculum policy debates, as of September 2026.
The Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has engaged the leadership of the Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) and representatives of university management to address concerns underlying the ongoing industrial action by university administrative and professio …
… The rest included Mr Mahama Ayariga, Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minister for Education, his Deputy, Dr Clement Abas Apaak, Mr James Agalga, MP for Builsa North Constituency, and Dr Thomas Winsum Anabah, MP for Garu, among other government offi …
… Other dignitaries who accompanied the President included Mr Alhassan Suhuyini, Deputy Minister of Roads and Highways, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minister of Education, Mr Felix Kwakye Ofosu, Minister of Government Communications, Mr Mahama Ayariga, newly appointed Minister of Chieftaincy …
… The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, announced that under the President’s leadership and guidance, the Free SHS initiative of the previous Government had been reviewed, and the President had taken monumental decisions to safeguard and expand secondary education.
… The rest included Mr Mahama Ayariga, Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minister for Education, his Deputy, Dr Clement Abas Apaak, Mr James Agalga, MP for Builsa North Constituency, and Dr Thomas Winsum Anabah, MP for Garu, among other government offi …
… In a speech read on behalf of the Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu by the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Linda Akweley Obengwaa Ocloo at the launch, he reaffirmed government’s commitment to improving the welfare, professional development and working conditions of teachers, …
… Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu, told the Public Accounts Committee in late 2025 that the country’s reading habit have been deteriorating, contrasting it with what he sees on trips abroad, where people fill their mornings with newspapers. …
… The engagement comes ahead of a meeting between GAUA, VCG and Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu, which has been rescheduled from Thursday, August 13, to Tuesday, August 18, 2026. …
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu is expected to meet the leadership of the Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) this week as the government steps up efforts to resolve the association’s ongoing strike. …
… ing and learning of Arabic should therefore not be misconstrued as the promotion or imposition of any religious belief.” The Ministry further clarified that the development of the standardised Arabic curriculum did not originate from the current Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu …
The government is considering extending the September 18 reporting date for Form One students if challenges with the Computerised School Selection and Placement System are not resolved by the end of the week, following a one-week extension of the placement resolution period.
The government is considering extending the September 18 reporting date for Form One students if challenges with the Computerised School Selection and Placement System are not resolved by the end of the week, following a one-week extension of the placement resolution period.
The University of Cape Coast will receive a US$500 million private-sector investment to construct 28 hostel blocks accommodating up to 28,000 students under a Public-Private Partnership arrangement with GSC Property Investment, with the project to be completed in five years at no direct cost to the state.
The MP for Tamale South has given GH¢150,000 to support 45 medical students previously sponsored by the late MP for Tamale Central, Dr Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed. The support is intended to help the students complete their training and continues a scholarship programme established by the late MP.
Ghana's Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu visited the National Resolution Centre to assess challenges in Senior High School placement, assuring that outstanding issues will be resolved before schools reopen. The Ministry also plans a comprehensive review of the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) following calls for greater transparency by the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference.
The government has established a 30-acre hybrid shea tree demonstration farm at Futa in Tamale Metropolis named after President John Mahama. The farm will serve as a research facility and heritage site, showcasing a hybrid shea variety developed by the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana that matures in three years, compared with 20 to 30 years for wild varieties.
NPP Education Committee spokesperson Dr Kwabena Tandoh says the party's role as opposition is to hold government accountable on education challenges rather than seek its failure. His comments came amid controversy over proposed Chinese and Arabic language instruction in schools and NPP demands for accountability from the Education Minister.
The NPP Education Committee spokesperson says there is a lack of clarity and policy divergence within government over the proposed introduction of Chinese and Arabic languages in schools, with contradictions between the Presidency and the Ministry of Education. He called for the President to provide clarity on the matter.
Dr Kwabena Tandoh, NPP Education Committee spokesperson and former Ghana Education Service Deputy Director-General, has criticised contradictions in government handling of education policy, citing the controversy over proposed Chinese and Arabic language instruction in schools as evidence of poor policy coordination and conflicting directives between government levels.
The New Patriotic Party has called on President Mahama to either apologise to Ghanaians or remove Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu over conflicting statements regarding the proposed introduction of Arabic and Chinese language studies in schools. The NPP argues that the President's denial of approving the policy contradicts earlier public announcements and curriculum development work by the Education Ministry.
The Education Minister has hinted at a possible extension of the reporting deadline for newly placed Form One students as the Computerised School Selection and Placement System continues to experience challenges. Parents and students have been seeking assistance at the Greater Accra Placement Resolution Centre with unresolved concerns including school distance, day-versus-boarding placements, and course dissatisfaction.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu says the outstanding 2025/2026 Book and Research Allowance for TUTAG members is expected to be paid by the end of September 2026, after the association threatened industrial action over delays. Members whose data has been captured may receive the allowance with September salaries.
The University of Cape Coast has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with GSC Property Investment Limited for a US$500 million student accommodation facility with 28,000 beds to be developed over five years on 25 hectares of UCC land under a 30-year Build-Operate-Transfer arrangement. The project requires no direct state funding and awaits Cabinet, Parliament, and Value for Money approvals.
The New Patriotic Party has called on President Mahama to either apologize or dismiss Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu over the reported introduction of Chinese and Arabic into Ghana's school curriculum, citing a contradiction between the Minister's announcement and the President's denial of approving the policy.
Ghana's Catholic Bishops' Conference has called for an independent review of the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) following complaints of unfairness, lack of transparency, and parents being asked to pay for school places. The Bishops noted that of 604,567 candidates who qualified for placement this year, 527,932 were placed, and raised concerns about students being placed in unsuitable schools or far from home.
Janet Asana Nabla, presidential candidate for the People's National Party, criticised President Mahama for publicly responding to Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu's comments on a proposed Chinese language and culture curriculum, arguing the disagreement should have been handled privately.
Ghana's Education Ministry will establish a technical committee to review the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) after the Catholic Bishops' Conference called for an independent probe into alleged corruption and payment demands related to school placements.
A University of Ghana political science lecturer says President Mahama's dismissal of claims that the government approved Arabic and Chinese as subjects in public schools should end the debate, noting that policy is ultimately determined by the President while ministers implement approved policies.
Former Deputy Housing Minister Dr. Prince Hamid Armah has challenged President Mahama's claim that there was never a policy to introduce Arabic and Chinese into Ghana's schools, asserting that Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu publicly announced the languages as compulsory foreign languages at secondary level and that NaCCA developed and presented a curriculum including them in July 2026.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has acknowledged shortcomings in this year's Computerised School Selection and Placement System but disputed characterising the process as a failure, attributing the crisis to infrastructure that failed to keep pace with Free SHS expansion. According to the minister, roughly 604,000 students are in the placement system, of which 527,000 (about 87 per cent) have been placed.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu says the previous NPP administration's Free Senior High School policy expanded access to secondary education but failed to provide adequate infrastructure to accommodate the resulting increase in student numbers, creating pressure on senior high schools and contributing to the current SHS placement crisis.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has criticized excessive public spending on secondary education and called for Ghana to redirect greater resources toward foundational learning at the basic education level, arguing that strong literacy skills acquired early significantly improve students' prospects of later academic success.
Ghana's Education Minister has requested that the Ghana Education Trust Fund allocate GH¢250 million this year to expand infrastructure in Category A senior high schools, citing rising student numbers under the Free SHS programme. The funds will support facilities expansion at schools including Achimota, Wesley Girls', Wesley College, PRESEC, and Prempeh College.
Adutwum's spokesperson challenges Education Minister Iddrisu's assertion that he inherited the CSSPS, contending that the current application (COLDSIS) was introduced under the Mahama administration in 2025, not inherited, and that the government must therefore own both its successes and failures.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu disclosed that between 313,000 and 328,000 students applied for Category A Senior High Schools despite only about 76,000 available places, with 55,000 students left without placements. He noted that 527,000 of 604,000 students on the placement system have been placed, representing about 87 per cent, and that vacancies remain across the system though not necessarily in schools students prefer.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has acknowledged challenges with this year's Senior High School placement process. Of about 604,000 students in the placement system, 527,000 (87 per cent) have been placed, though available vacancies remain concentrated in less-preferred schools.
The Education Minister has announced that government plans to recruit an additional 10,000 teachers next year to address staffing shortages in basic and secondary schools. The recruitment is expected to be included in the 2027 Budget alongside plans to expand education infrastructure and allocate between US$250 million and US$300 million through the GETFund formula to upgrade school facilities.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has questioned what advice he could seek from predecessor Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum on Ghana's education challenges, saying the current administration inherited an education sector facing infrastructure deficits, food shortages under Free SHS, and the burden of the double-track system introduced under Adutwum's tenure.
Ghana's Education Minister announced plans to upgrade 20 Category B Senior High Schools to Category A status and construct 10 new model Category A schools, bringing the total target to 30 institutions. The move aims to ease pressure on school placement amid high demand, with 328,000 students selecting Category A schools against only 76,000 available vacancies in 2026.
The NPP says it will critically assess the government's proposed changes to the selection process for MMDCEs with a view to supporting measures that strengthen Ghana's decentralisation system, and will not approach the proposal with political sabotage in mind. The party's Deputy General Secretary recalled accusations that the NDC deliberately frustrated former President Akufo-Addo's earlier attempt to introduce partisan MMDCE elections.