President Akufo-Addo says 17,340 out-of-school children have been reintegrated into mainstream formal schools through the Ghana Education Outcomes Project (GEOP).

“The goal of GEOP is to provide educational support to seventy-two thousand (72,000) out-of-school children, helping them access complementary education and transition into formal schools,” he explained.

The President said this during his presentation of the 2024 State of the Nation Address in Parliament.

President Akufo-Addo said the project formed part of Government’s comprehensive reforms within the education sector to improve learning outcomes and ensure every child was equipped with literacy and numeracy skills.

“This programme has worked so well and won the GOVTECH PRIZE award in February 2024, at the World Government Summit held in Dubai,” he added.

The President said the Government had also increased investment in infrastructure for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education at the pre-tertiary level. 

He said the construction of 10 STEM Schools and 10 STEM Centres had commenced across the country, with seven STEM Model Schools operationalised.

The schools, he noted, had been equipped with state-of-the-art laboratories and classrooms, dormitories, assembly halls, dining halls and conducive environments to enhance teaching and learning. 

The Ministry of Education is set to reintegrate 70,000 out-of-school children in schools through the Ghana Education Outcomes Project together with development partners and service providers.

The GEOP is an additional funding project under the Ghana Accountability for Learning Outcomes Project designed to train, reintegrate and retain out-of-school children in schools.