Has girl child education limited male child empowerment in Ghana’s educational system?

Education remains the bedrock of any nation’s development. In Ghana, decades of deliberate policy to lift the girl-child out of poverty, early marriage, cultural bias and discrimination have transformed classrooms and communities.

The debate around girl child education in Ghana has transformed our educational system over the period.

Based on the consistent advocacy by both state and non-state actors, girls’ enrolment has increased steadily. Right To Play notes “an impressive number of Ghanaian girls currently in school compared to what pertained in the past”.

These initiatives have helped thousands of girls gain access to quality education, however, some school of thoughts believe that the increasing focus on girls has resulted in less attention being paid to the educational needs of boys.

In a random interview many respondents believe that over the years, scholarship schemes, mentorship programmes, and awareness campaigns have encouraged more girls to enrol in and complete school.

These efforts have reduced the gender gap in education and increased the number of girls pursuing higher education and professional careers. Today, many Ghanaian women are excelling as doctors, engineers, teachers, lawyers, and scientists because they were given opportunities to learn, Mr Dominic Owusu a teacher stated.

Despite these achievements, concerns have been raised about the education of the male child.

Madam Akosua Tawiah, a social worker expressed concern that in many communities, boys are leaving school to engage in farming, fishing, mining, commercial driving, and other forms of labour to support their families.

She noted that others become involved in drug abuse, truancy, and other social problems. Unlike girls, boys often have fewer educational support programmes specifically designed to address these challenges.

Some critics argue that scholarships and educational campaigns are more frequently targeted at girls than boys. As a result, some boys feel overlooked and less motivated to continue their education.

Education should promote fairness and inclusion for every child, regardless of gender.

To address this situation, the government, schools, parents, and non-governmental

Organizations should adopt a balanced approach.

While continuing to support girls, they should also introduce mentorship programmes, scholarships, career guidance, and counseling services for boys who are at risk of dropping out of school.

Both boys and girls deserve equal opportunities to develop their talents and contribute to national development.

Data from the West African Examination Council (WAEC) indicates that at the examination level, girls now match or exceed boys in participation. In 2022 WASSCE, 219,130 of 422,883 candidates were females. In the 2023 BECE, 300,391 of 600,714 candidates were girls as opposed to 300,323 boys.

The actual limits to empowerment for both boys and girls are poverty, cultural norms, regional inequality, and curriculum bias. Framing this as “girls vs boys” distracts from fixing those root causes.

The task now is not to roll back girl-focused policies but to make the system truly gender-responsive for all learners.

The Growing Concern: What About the Boys?
Despite these gains, educators and community leaders are raising red flags about boys.

In many districts, a different story is unfolding. A growing number of boys are exiting school early to take up farming, fishing, mining, and commercial driving to support their families. Others are drifting into truancy, substance abuse, and other social vices.

Unlike girls, boys have fewer targeted support programmes designed to keep them in school when economic pressure mounts. Critics argue that scholarships, sensitization drives, and NGO interventions are still disproportionately skewed toward girls.

The consequence, they say, is a perception problem. Some boys feel overlooked. Some disengage. And the belief is hardening in parts of the country that the focus on girls has come at the expense of boys.

Promoters of girl-child empowerment argued that it was never designed to exclude boys. It was a corrective measure, introduced to dismantle barriers that historically held girls back.

The challenge now is not that girls have been empowered, but that the evolving needs of boys have not received equal strategic attention.

"The objective of education is equity, not preference," a senior education official noted. "When one group advances and the other stagnates, the entire system loses."

Data from schools show that while girls are progressing, boys are struggling with retention, motivation, and career guidance, particularly in low-income communities.

The Way Forward: An Inclusive, Balanced Agenda

To sustain national progress, stakeholders say Ghana must move from a corrective approach to a comprehensive one.

Educationists, the Ministry of Education, the Ghana Education Service, parents, and NGOs are being urged to adopt a dual-track strategy: continue and strengthen support for girls to consolidate the gains made.

Expand targeted interventions for boys at risk of dropping out. This includes mentorship programmes, scholarships, career guidance, technical and vocational training, and counseling services that address peer pressure, economic hardship, and behavioural challenges.

Parents also have a role. Communities must challenge the notion that a boy’s primary value is as a breadwinner and instead reinforce education as the surest path to long-term stability for both sons and daughters.

Girl-child empowerment has delivered one of Ghana’s most important social transformations. It has opened doors for thousands of girls and changed the face of the country’s workforce.

But the next phase of education reform must be purposeful and progressive. The goal cannot be to favour one gender over the other. It must be to ensure that every Ghanaian child, boy or girl, has the opportunity to learn, to grow, and to contribute meaningfully to national development.

If Ghana is to build the human capital it needs for the future, then the education agenda must leave no child behind.

BY Judah Agustine Appiah
ICT Expert and Social Advocate

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