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The Ghana Education Service (GES) has directed all schools to stop hosting lavish post-examination celebrations on their premises, following a growing trend of parents presenting expensive gifts to students after they complete their Senior High School examinations.
The directive comes in response to videos and photos circulating on social media showing students receiving luxury items such as cars, money bouquets and other high-value gifts from parents and guardians immediately after writing their final papers.
In a statement issued on June 19, 2026, GES said it had taken note of what it described as an emerging culture of flamboyant celebrations by parents and guardians to mark the completion of Senior High School education.
According to the Service, these events often involve the presentation of costly gifts on school grounds, creating an atmosphere that is inconsistent with the values schools are meant to promote.
While recognising the right of parents to celebrate the accomplishments of their children, GES stressed that such celebrations should not take place within school compounds.
“Management is not against the practice of parents and guardians celebrating the achievements of their children or wards,” the statement said. “However, Management is against the practice of such ostentatious displays by parents on school premises.”
Under the new directive, all post-examination celebrations involving the extravagant presentation of gifts, including motor vehicles, are prohibited on school campuses with immediate effect.
GES explained that the move is intended to prevent the practice from becoming embedded in school culture and to preserve the values of equality and inclusiveness within educational institutions.
The Service further warned that school heads who allow such activities to take place on their campuses will face disciplinary action.
“Heads of schools who allow this practice on their campus will be sanctioned,” the statement emphasised.
GES did not indicate what penalties, if any, would apply to students who participate in such celebrations.
Explaining the decision, the Service noted that schools are meant to be environments where students are valued for their hard work, talent and academic achievements rather than their families’ financial status.
It argued that public displays of wealth on school grounds risk creating visible socio-economic divisions among students, shifting attention away from academic success and potentially causing emotional distress to those from less privileged backgrounds.
“Ostentatious displays of wealth by parents on school premises create visible socio-economic divisions, shift the focus from academic achievement to financial privilege, and can foster psychological distress among students whose parents are not able to compete in such flamboyant celebrations,” the statement said.
GES has therefore called on parents, guardians and all education stakeholders to support the directive in order to safeguard the principles of equity, inclusiveness and academic excellence in schools across the country.
Source:Omanghana.com
