Education Minister and Tamale South MP Haruna Iddrisu has disclosed that Ghana’s education sector is grappling with a significant shortage of teachers, estimating that the country requires between 50,000 and 90,000 additional educators to adequately staff schools across the nation.
Addressing Parliament on Thursday, June 18, Mr Iddrisu said the government’s ability to recruit the required number of teachers has been constrained by financial limitations and budgetary approvals.
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According to him, recent reforms in the education sector have increased demand for teaching personnel.
He explained that the creation of the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET), alongside the Ghana Education Service (GES), has expanded staffing needs, as teachers must now be distributed across both institutions.
“The education sector has undergone reforms that are expected to improve learning outcomes in the long term. With both CTVET and the GES requiring personnel, teacher recruitment now has to cater to the needs of both bodies.
However, there is a gap between the number of teachers needed and the number the government has approval to recruit. While the sector requires between 50,000 and 90,000 teachers, I only received clearance to employ 7,000, and that is what we are working with,” he stated.
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His comments provide context for the government’s recent decision to recruit 7,000 teachers, a move that has generated discussion among education stakeholders and unemployed graduates.
Many trained teachers have criticised the limited recruitment exercise, arguing that it does little to reduce the growing number of qualified education graduates who remain without jobs.
Mr. Iddrisu stressed that although government reforms are intended to strengthen the education system and improve its future prospects, available financial resources continue to restrict the pace at which new teachers can be hired.