He said the said fees had been absorbed by the government, and that it was only students who were not under the free SHS policy who were supposed to pay the registration fees to enable them to sit the exam.

Dr Nkansah was reacting to news making rounds that all final-year SHS students were to pay the said registration fees before they could write the exam at a press conference in Accra last Monday.

"We read in the news that WASSCE registration fee has been pegged at GH¢465, and since that news came out a lot of parents are asking whether every student is going to pay.  “All students in government secondary schools under the Free SHS programme are not required to pay any registration fees because it has been absorbed by the programme," he added.

 

Registration period

The Director-General also called on headmasters of SHSs to desist from pressuring SHS Three students who are currently on vacation to return to school to complete their registration forms.

He said his outfit was working with WAEC to give ample time to the students to complete the registration process which is slated to end on April 19, 2024, after they had returned to school on April 17, this year.

“We know some of the students live far and near and are enjoying their vacations at home, so they are not expected to return to school to complete their registration until school reopens on April 17. We can assure them that they will be given ample time; we are working with WAEC to make sure ample time is given for the completion of their registration," Dr Nkansah added.

Gratitude to teachers

Dr Nkansah also expressed gratitude to the three teacher unions who had been on strike since March 20, this year, for calling off the industrial action. "This is pleasant news indeed, and I want to take the opportunity to applaud them for calling off this strike to pave the way for us to continue with negotiations," the Director-General said.

 

He said the decision to call off the strike gave room for further dialogue to address the concerns of the unions.