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2021 BECE begins smoothly
This year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) has started smoothly across the country.
Apart from the late start of the examination at a few centres in the Greater Accra Region, no major irregularity was recorded an hour into the examination.
A total of 571, 894 candidates are writing the examination from today, Monday, November 15, 2021, to Friday November 19, 2021 at 2,158 centres nationwide with a total of 20,124 invigilators, 2,158 supervisors and 1,853 assistant supervisors.
Mrs Agnes Teye-Cudjoe, Head of Public Affairs, West African Examinations Council’s National Office, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the Council had put in place stringent security measures to prevent leakages in this year’s examinations.
She said officials of the National Intelligence Bureau monitored the production process – printing, sorting and packaging of the papers- and confident that there would be no leakages of the papers before and during the exams.
“The Council has also increased the number of depots storing confidential materials under strict surveillance to ensure that the papers did not leak before and during the examinations,” she said.
Mrs Teye-Cudjoe said all COVID-19 safety protocols would be observed during the examination, stressing that all candidates would be given hand sanitisers and that “should a candidate fall sick and a medical report is available, a committee will look into the situation and take a decision.”
A statement signed by Mrs Cassandra Twum Ampofo, the Head of Public Relations, Ghana Education Service, commended teachers, school heads, parents, and other stakeholders for preparing the candidates for the examination.
The statement entreated all stakeholders to desist from any form of examination malpractice.
It said details of the selection process for the Senior High School would be communicated in due course and wished all candidates success and good luck.
Mr Peter Korda, Head of Public Relations, Ghana National Association of Teachers, said they expected the BECE results to be better this year despite the long COVID-19 break.
He said teachers did their best to catch up with the curriculum after the 10-month break in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“COVID-19 pushed teachers to go the extra mile to adequately prepare students for the examinations through extra classes and online teaching and assignments,” he said.
He advised the candidates to adhere to rules and regulations of the exams.
Meanwhile, male candidates continue to dominate the examination with 287, 605 males writing this year’s examination as against 284, 289 females.
In 2020, out of a total of 531, 705 candidates, the females were 262, 286 against 269,419 males.
In 2019, out of 517, 331 candidates, there were 253, 729 females and 263, 602 males.
For 2018, the females were 246,529 against 263,295 males, totalling 509, 824.
The year 2017 was not different. A total of 226, 905 females wrote the examination against 241, 148 males.
The Ashanti Region, for a very long time, has been registering the highest number of candidates with males outnumbering the females.
In 2017, it had 47,702 males against 45,868 females. In 2018, the males were 54,487 as against 51,121. Similarly, there were 52,945 males and 51,516 females in 2019. A total of 54,025 males and 52,832 females in 2020. And in 2021, the males were 55,829 whereas the females were 55,603.
The case is different for Greater Accra Region, which records more females than males.
In this year’s examination, the Region (Greater Accra) registered 50,815 males and 54,824 females.
There were 45,172 males against 49,271 females in 2020.
Also, whereas 43,273 males were recorded in 2019, the females were 47,311.
In 2018, the male candidates stood at 42, 643 against 45,710 females.
The males in 2017 were 41,022 against 44,019 females.
Below is the regional breakdown for this year’s examination:
Eastern Region, 28,475 males, 27, 455 females.
Central Region, 31,954 males and 31,773 females.
Western and Western North Regions will have 29,718 males and 28,598.
The Bono, Ahafo and Bono East Regions registered 27,138 males against 26127 females.
A total of 21,871 males and 20,222 will represent the Volta and Oti Regions.
The Northern, North East and Savannah Regions will have 24,029 males and 20,809 females.
Upper East, 10,586 males and 11,530 females.
The Upper West Region, 7,290 males and 7,348 females. -GNA
The Global Network of Export-Import Banks and Development Finance Institutions (G-NEXID) successfully held its sixth (6th) Exchange Programme, hosted by the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) Bank in Accra from March 22 to 23 March.
The event brought together member institutions, partner organisations and Ghanaian public entities to advance dialogue on South-South trade, investment and development finance, while also creating opportunities for knowledge-sharing and institutional cooperation.
Organised as a capacity-building and networking platform, the 2026 edition of the G-NEXID Exchange focused on GEXIM’s experience in developing innovative solutions to promote intra-African and extra-African trade.
It also highlighted trade and investment opportunities in Ghana, particularly in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and broader national development initiatives.
The Exchange Programme forms part of G-NEXID’s mandate to foster cooperation among export-import banks and development finance institutions in support of South-South trade and investment.
This 6th edition follows earlier successful programmes hosted by India Exim Bank (2016), BNDES (2017), Indonesia Eximbank (2018), Afreximbank (2019) and Saudi EXIM Bank (2025).
On the first day, participants were presented with G-NEXID institutional information and received an update on the Network’s 2026 work programme.
There were a series of substantive presentations, including an overview of the Ghanaian economy by the Ministry of Finance, with particular attention to debt-related challenges; a presentation by the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), on investment opportunities in the country; and institutional presentations by GEXIM and Development Bank Ghana (DBG) on their respective mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Discussions during the sessions underscored strong interest in sector-focused webinars and business dialogues, particularly in agribusiness value chains such as poultry and rice.
Participants also emphasized the importance of continued information exchange and the sharing of best practices, especially in the area of guarantees.
The second day opened with a presentation on the 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme, a national economic transformation strategy launched by President John Dramani Mahama in July 2025.
The initiative aims to enhance economic productivity through continuous industrial activity, accelerated export development and strategic import substitution.
As the programme is expected to mobilise both private and development capital, it presents concrete opportunities for G-NEXID members in areas such as co-financing, guarantees, trade finance and technical cooperation.
The programme also featured institutional presentations by guest organisations, namely the African Guarantee and Economic Cooperation Fund (FAGACE) and the West African Development Bank (BOAD), which shared their mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Following these exchanges, the G-NEXID Secretariat held bilateral discussions with both institutions as part of the Network’s ongoing membership drive.
Participants further benefited from a presentation by the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), as well as a showcase of GEXIM’s key pipeline projects.
On the margins of the Exchange Programme, G-NEXID members also held their 20th Annual General Assembly Meeting to review progress and discuss strategic priorities.
Following the event, participants joined the GEXIM@10 International Conference, held from March 24-25, 2026 under the theme, “A Decade of Enabling Export Trade and Industrial Transformation: Resetting GEXIM for the Next Frontier.”
The conference provided an important platform for exploring how Ghana can strengthen its transition from a primary commodity exporter to a more competitive player in value-added trade and industrial development.
Source – G-NEXID
President John Dramani Mahama on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, signed five bills including three amendment bills passed by Parliament into law.
They are: Security and Intelligence Agencies Bill, 2025; University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Bill, 2025; Ghana Deposit Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2025; Growth and Sustainability Levy (Amendment) Bill, 2026; and Education Regulatory Bodies (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
In a brief remark after assenting to the bills, President Mahama explained that the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act, 2026, scraps the Office of Minister of National Security and frees the President’s to appoint any Minister to supervise the security agencies.
He said it also reverses the name of the office of National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), to the original name, Bureau of National Intelligence, (BNI).
This the President said, addresses the confusion between that security agency and a well-known Ghanaian financial institution, the National Investment Bank.
President Mahama also noted that the University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Act, 2026, establishes another University in the Eastern Region, at Bonsu, with three campuses – the main campus at Bonsu in the Eastern Region, with the second campus to be cited at Ohawu in the Oti Region.
The third, the Presdient assed will be located at Acherensua in the Ahafo Region.
Touching on the Amendment to the Growth and Sustainability Levy Act, the President said, “As you’re aware, the act was amended to increase it from 1% to 3%, and so this act reduces it again. That is the levy on mining companies. It reduces it again to 1%, because of the introduction of the sliding scale of royalties.”
He also spoke to the passage of the Government Education Regulatory Bodies Amendment Act, emphasising that amends Act 1023 to grant greater flexibility to private tertiary institutions and the option to Charter.
The Ghana Deposit Protection Amendment Act, the President concluded, is an amendment to an original act that was supposed to guarantee deposits held in commercial banks or financial institutions.
It basically expands protection to include mobile money wallets and other digital platforms, ensuring a wider scope of digital financial assets are secured.
The signing ceremony, was witnessed by the Clerk of Parliament, Mr. Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Dr Dominic Akrutinga Ayine, Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, a Senior Presidential Advisor and a Special Aide to the President, Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, and the Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang.
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