Dr Kingsley Agyemang, Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South and member of Parliament’s Education Select Committee, has urged the government to explore community college education as a solution to the growing number of boys dropping out of school in northern Ghana.

Speaking to Joy News, Dr Agyemang said, “There’s a proposal for community college education where we pay college students who are pursuing legitimate education and encourage them to return to serve in these communities. This is already beginning in some areas, and we hope it will help address the challenge.”

His comments come in the wake of a study showing that five out of 10 boys aged between four and 17, who are supposed to be in school, are out of the classroom in 20 districts across the five northern regions.

About 3,536 boys have dropped out, significantly higher than the dropout rates for girls, reversing previous trends where girls were more likely to leave school due to early marriage and socio-cultural pressures.

Kofi Asare, Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, highlighted that the dropout problem worsens as children advance through upper primary and junior high school. He attributed the trend to teacher shortages, poverty, migration pressures, hazardous labour, and the growing lure of sports betting and illegal mining (galamsey) among boys.

Dr Agyemang’s proposal aims to incentivise educated youth to serve in underserved communities, particularly in the northern regions, to mitigate the crisis.