Teachers’ strike: Government has funds, but processes are causing delays – Education Committee Vice Chair

The Vice Chairman of Parliament’s Education Committee, Joseph Kumah, says government has funds to meet its financial obligations to teachers, but administrative processes are contributing to delays in settling some of the outstanding payments.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story on Tuesday, October 6, Mr Kumah said the Education Committee has been monitoring the dispute between government and the pre-tertiary teacher unions and has engaged stakeholders in an effort to help resolve the impasse.

According to him, the concerns raised by the unions, including the 20% deprived-area allowance and promotion arrears, largely involve administrative processes such as uploading and validating data.

“Our findings, our checks, are that it is not about financial constraint. There’s money available to pay, but it’s the processes.”

He said the collective bargaining agreement is also a major issue under discussion, with negotiations covering matters such as management allowance, continuous professional development allowance and digital allowance.

Mr Kumah said Parliament’s Education Committee recognises the concerns of the teachers and believes they deserve to receive commitments made to them.

“Anybody that is promised something definitely, they should receive that promise.”

However, he appealed to the striking teachers to consider the impact of their continued absence from the classroom on pupils, particularly as the industrial action affects teaching and learning across the country.

He said the committee would continue to monitor the situation and engage the relevant institutions, while respecting the roles of the Ministry of Education and other agencies responsible for managing the negotiations.

Mr Kumah also noted that Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu had given an assurance that all outstanding promotion arrears would be paid by October 30.

He said Parliament would continue to monitor the government’s commitments and intervene where necessary to ensure the concerns of both parties are addressed.

His comments follow renewed negotiations between the teacher unions, the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission and the Ghana Education Service, as efforts continue to resolve the nationwide strike by pre-tertiary teachers.