The Ministry of Education has declared that measures are underway to compensate 3,200 instructors who have been working without pay for nearly ten months.
Speaking at the ADEA Triennale on Education Conference, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu announced that Cabinet has approved the payment of salary owing to newly assigned teachers, including graduates from colleges of education and universities.
“A few weeks ago, myself and the chief director received a petition from some teachers who are unhappy with the government over their unpaid salaries for some months. I am happy to announce that the cabinet has approved the 6200 teachers to be absorbed.
“We would begin the process in due course. We will give them back pay. I think I can speak for both ministries in this matter. The Cabinet gave the Minister of Finance approval to spend about 1.1 billion Ghana Cedis to absorb a category of health workers and teachers,” he said.
Plans to start an equity distribution program to elevate some Category B schools to Category A rank were also disclosed by Mr. Iddrisu. According to him, the action is meant to alleviate placement difficulties, since many students find it difficult to get accepted into the Category A colleges of their choice.
However, he pointed out that in order to improve infrastructure at the targeted schools, the ministry would need sufficient financial backing.
“The ministry acknowledges that there is a significant challenge when there are 76,000 vacancies, but 393,000 qualified applicants desiring to fill them. The challenge is described as a near impossibility.
“To address equity and capacity, the Minister has discussed with the President a plan for 2026 to convert at least 10 Category C schools to Category B, and 10 Category B schools to Category A. This conversion will be backed by infrastructure development, including available classroom blocks, dormitories for students, and quality improvement through improved teaching and learning materials and aids.
“But I will need budgetary support and allocation to do that,” he indicated.
The announcement comes after the Coalition of Unpaid Teachers, which is composed of college and university graduates, petitioned the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday, September 30, about 13 months of unpaid salary.
The Education Minister promised the teachers that a joint memorandum with the Ministry of Finance will be brought to Cabinet to address their concerns after receiving the petition.
