Government to pay 6,200 unpaid teachers – Haruna

Over 6,200 teachers who have worked for months without pay will soon receive their full salaries and arrears, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has announced.

Speaking ahead of the upcoming ADEA Triennale in Accra, the Minister said Cabinet had granted approval for the Ministry of Finance to begin payment arrangements for the affected teachers.

“They will be issued their staff IDs, and their back pay will be processed,” Mr. Iddrisu assured, adding that the teachers’ inclusion in the public education payroll would be completed soon.

He acknowledged the financial hardship and frustration endured by the teachers, some of whom had recently protested the delay in their wages, but urged them to remain calm and avoid further disruptions.

“We understand their concerns, but disruptions to academic work hurt the very students they are meant to support,” the Minister said.

Mr. Iddrisu reiterated the government’s commitment to improving teacher welfare, noting that reforms were being implemented to make recruitment and payment systems more efficient.

He revealed that his outfit was working closely with the Finance Ministry to ensure that such delays do not become the norm.

It follows an assurance by the Deputy Minister of Education, Dr. Clement Apaak, who pledged the ministry’s commitment at a Public Accounts Committee hearing in Parliament, to address the financial dispute with the teachers.

Dr. Apaak, who led the Education Ministry’s team to the hearing, said his outfit was working around the clock to solve the problem. He concurred with the chair that the individuals were within their rights to be employed as Ghanaians in the service of the nation.

“Honourable Chair, I agree with you entirely. These are Ghanaians. They are our relatives. They are our sons and daughters, and as Members of Parliament, they are our constituents. I can assure you that the Honourable Minister [of Education] has been working assiduously to get the needed clearance for this issue to be resolved,” Dr. Apaak stated.

He said his boss had been in constant touch with the Finance Ministry and Parliament as part of efforts to address the thorny issue.

Like the minister, he has repeatedly stressed that the demand for teachers remains high in the public education sector.

Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Professor Ernest Davis who was also at the parliamentary hearing, indicated that out of 15,755 teachers who received clearance during a period which began last year, 10,112 had been successfully processed.

He explained that nearly 6,000 had missed out “for one reason or another”. The education service boss did note that the new GES management that came in early this year had come to meet an ongoing process which had onboarded about 6,000 teachers and followed through the process.

He said that because the onboarding was truncated, applicants were directed to reactivate their clearances to enable them to secure their postings.