The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) is poised to embark on the eighth round of the Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 8), with a heightened emphasis on tackling learning poverty. 

This initiative follows the 2021 Population and Housing Census, which revealed a staggering statistic: 7.9 million Ghanaians aged six years and older are unable to read or write with understanding in any language.

The Ghana Living Standards Survey, a nationally representative household survey, provides crucial statistics on the welfare and living conditions of individuals and households across the country. 

Since 1987, Ghana has conducted seven rounds of the GLSS, each with a five-year interval and field data collection spanning 12 months.

GLSS 8 will specifically address learning poverty, defined as a child's inability to read and understand simple text and basic numeracy at their learning level. 

Scheduled to begin in July 2024, the survey will cover approximately 1,000 clusters and involve over 25,000 households nationwide. 

Data collection will run from September 2024 to September 2025, followed by data analysis and report writing, with final results expected by July 2026.

Speaking to the media at the survey launch, Government Statistician Professor Samuel Kobina Annim outlined the objectives of the GLSS 8. 

“GLSS generally has a very broad focus because the data set that we use for rebasing our consumer price index, rebasing our gross domestic product, and understanding various dimensions of living conditions, employment, health-related conditions, among others. But for the eighth round of the GLSS, we are especially focusing on learning poverty given that from the 2021 Population and Housing Census, we identified 7.9 million people who could not read or write in any language with understanding,” Professor Annim explained.

Deputy Minister of Education Rev. John Ntim Fordjour expressed the Ministry of Education’s commitment to utilising the survey's findings to refine policies and improve educational outcomes.

 "The ministry is dedicated to addressing the issues highlighted by the survey and will use its findings and recommendations to enhance our educational strategies," he affirmed.