“TEACHERS shape doctors, engineers, presidents, and pastors yet sleep in kiosks, classrooms, and abandoned structures. When will Ghana begin to treat its teachers like the nation builders they truly deserve?”
In Ghana, education is often called the key to national development. Politicians, policymakers, and citizens alike agree on the importance of education yet the very individuals who carry this responsibility, our teachers, are being forced to live in conditions that are unfit for human dignity.
Thousands of teachers, particularly those posted to rural and underserved areas, have no official accommodation, no rental assistance, and no housing security. Many are left to fend for themselves in unfamiliar communities where even basic rental facilities are scarce, expensive, or simply unavailable. Some teachers live in classrooms, share single rooms with strangers, or reside miles away from their assigned schools and they commute under dangerous and exhausting conditions. A few even squat in uncompleted buildings, kiosks, or school kitchens just to survive.
Accommodation challenges are just one face of the bitter financial reality teachers face daily in Ghana. Despite high inflation and cost of living, newly trained teachers earn less than GH¢2,500 monthly. For many, this amount cannot cover rent, transportation, utilities, food, and family needs.
Unlike many public sector workers, most GES teachers receive no rent allowance or housing benefits. In areas where landlords demand 1-2 years’ rent upfront, teachers are either forced into debt or homelessness. Newly posted teachers often wait 3 to 12 months before receiving their first salary. During this period, they survive on loans, borrowing, or support from struggling family members.
Teachers, out of desperation, turn to salary advance schemes and loan facilities with high interest rates. Many end up with take home pay of less than GH¢500, after deductions by banks, insurance, and unions.
Incredibly, many teachers spend from their own pockets to buy chalk, markers, textbooks, and even food for hungry students in classrooms with no official budget.
How can Ghana expect quality education when its teachers are, Overworked and underpaid, Homeless or living in undignified shelters, Financially enslaved to loan companies, Stressed, demoralized, and disrespected
It is no longer enough to praise teachers on World Teachers’ Day or in political speeches. What teachers in Ghana need is real support not symbolic appreciation.
The Ministry of Education and GES must collaborate with District Assemblies and private developers to establish low cost teacher bungalows, especially in rural districts.
Just like other public servants, teachers should receive monthly rent support as part of their conditions of service. Teachers posted to hard-to-reach areas should get hardship allowances, accommodation packages, and relocation grants.
Government should partner with banks to offer teachers zero or low-interest loans to acquire land or build homes. Teacher salaries should be reviewed to reflect current economic realities and enable a decent standard of living.
We cannot continue to ignore the silent suffering of teachers who educate our future leaders. Stakeholders from the Ghana Education Service, Ministry of Education, Parliament, and the Presidency must act now.
Ghana’s education system will not improve until the teachers who hold it up are treated with dignity, respect, and care.
Let’s stop talking and start building homes for our heroes.
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