The Minister for Education, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, has urged heads of senior high schools to strengthen inspection routines to stop students from smuggling drugs, knives, and other prohibited items onto school campuses.

He made the call during a meeting with members of the Conference of Heads of Government-Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS), held at the Sunyani Technical University on Wednesday, April 9, 2025.

Mr Iddrisu expressed concern about the increasing safety risks in some schools and said stricter supervision was needed to maintain discipline and protect lives.

“We must step up inspection and supervision,” he stated. “School heads have a responsibility to prevent students from smuggling prohibited items like drugs and weapons into the classroom environment.”

This was the minister’s first formal engagement with CHASS since his appointment. Heads of public senior high schools from across the country attended the meeting to discuss long-standing issues affecting the sector.

Mr Iddrisu acknowledged that many challenges remain unresolved. These include a shortage of non-teaching staff, difficulties with the double-track system, and unpaid financial obligations carried over from previous administrations.

He said the government intends to treat these issues with the urgency they deserve.

“Education must be treated as a national emergency,” Mr Iddrisu told the heads. He called for broader cooperation among all players in the education sector to help improve teaching and learning conditions across the country.

During the meeting, the minister also introduced the new leadership of the Ghana Education Service (GES). Professor Ernest Kofi Davis was announced as Acting Director-General, supported by Prof Smile Gavua Dzisi and Dr Manawaru Issahaque as deputy directors.

CHASS members used the occasion to raise concerns about inadequate resources, external interference in school administration, and what they described as unfair disciplinary measures taken against some school heads.

Officials of the GES who were present acknowledged the concerns and assured the school heads of fair hearing processes moving forward.

The meeting formed part of broader efforts by the Ministry of Education to build stronger engagement with school heads and find workable solutions to the challenges facing public senior high schools.