Haruna Iddrisu Promises October 30 Deadline for Teacher Arrears to End Industrial Action

​Ghana’s Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has pledged that the government will fully settle all outstanding promotion arrears owed to striking teachers by October 30. Speaking at a two-day symposium and exhibition organized by the National Teaching Council (NTC) at the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) Hall in Accra, the Minister emphasized that the state accepts full responsibility as an employer to fulfill its financial obligations to educators across the country.

​Addressing the gathering, Haruna Iddrisu issued a strong personal commitment to resolve the longstanding debt that has strained relations between the government and the teaching force. Putting his credibility on the line, he assured the public that the government is taking decisive steps to process the funds, declaring, “If by October 30, your promotion arrears are not paid, then I will have no honour.”

​The Minister’s intervention follows a nationwide industrial action launched on September 25 by three prominent pre-tertiary teacher unions: the Pre-Tertiary Education Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG), the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), and the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT). The unions initiated the strike to demand immediate action on unpaid promotion arrears and other unresolved conditions of service, citing mounting frustration among their members over repeated payment delays.

​Government officials hope the firm commitment and tight timeline will ease tensions across the education sector and pave the way for striking teachers to return to the classroom. Payment of promotion arrears has remained a persistent hurdle in Ghana’s pre-tertiary education system, making this latest assurance a critical test of trust between the ministry and the country's teaching workforce.

@Volta Today