The Government Statistician, Dr Alhassan Iddrisu, has announced progress on Ghana’s Pilot Register-Based Education Statistics Project following a meeting involving the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), the Ministry of Education and the National Identification Authority (NIA).
In a post on X, Dr Iddrisu said he led a GSS delegation to meet Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu to discuss the use of secure administrative data to improve education planning and outcomes.
He disclosed that the Education Minister approved key requests for the project and agreed to chair its Project Steering Committee.
“Building Better Education Starts With Better Data,” Dr Iddrisu said.
According to him, the initiative is aimed at helping Ghana transition from periodic education data collection to a modern register-based system capable of producing timely and reliable statistics.
He explained that, once implemented, the system would allow policymakers to track learners throughout the education cycle, strengthen planning, improve resource allocation and support evidence-based decision-making.
Dr Iddrisu added that the model could eventually be expanded nationwide and adapted for use in other sectors.
He expressed appreciation to the National Identification Authority for its collaboration on the initiative.
Addressing concerns about data privacy, the Government Statistician assured the public that personal information would remain protected under Ghana’s data protection laws.
“Let me assure all Ghanaians that data privacy, protection and confidentiality remain paramount. Personal information will remain secure and protected under the Statistical Service Act and the Data Protection Act. Only data necessary for statistical purposes will be used, and individual records will never be disclosed,” he said.
Dr Iddrisu stressed the importance of collaboration and data-driven policymaking in strengthening Ghana’s education system.
“The future of education is not built on assumptions. It is built on trusted data, strong partnerships and bold leadership,” he added.
The proposed register-based education statistics system is expected to reduce reliance on traditional periodic surveys by securely using administrative records to generate more accurate and timely education data.
If successfully piloted, the system will support improved policy planning, monitoring and efficient resource allocation across the education sector while maintaining strict safeguards for data privacy and confidentiality.
