Members of the Coalition of Unpaid Teachers took to the streets of Accra on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, to demand the payment of salary arrears they say have accumulated over a period of 14 months.
The protest comes on the heels of a recent decision by the Ministry of Finance to grant financial clearance to the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service to recruit 7,000 new teachers. Demonstrators questioned the timing of the recruitment, arguing that existing teachers are still owed significant arrears.
Speaking in an interview with Radio Gold, the convener of the coalition disclosed that Cabinet had earlier approved an allocation of GH¢1.1 billion to cover salaries and arrears for both teachers and nurses following previous protests. However, he claimed that while nurses have reportedly received their full payments, teachers have only been paid two months’ worth of arrears.
He further alleged that a structured payment plan was agreed upon between the Finance Ministry and the Health Ministry to ensure nurses were paid, but a similar arrangement has not been implemented for teachers.
“In February this year, there was a release from the Minister of Finance agreeing with the Minister of Health with a clear payment plan on how the nurses will be paid from the money that is supposed to cater for us,” he said.
The convener also highlighted administrative challenges, noting that some teachers are yet to receive their staff identification numbers, leaving them excluded from the government payroll entirely.
The coalition is now calling on government to provide a clear and actionable roadmap for settling their arrears, similar to the plan implemented for nurses.
“So we are here to demand our payment plan. Cabinet approved it, not me. The money is there,” he stressed.
Story By: Errah Salifu Razak, Intern(UNIMAC-GIJ) and Rejoice Quaye, Intern(Univ. of Cape Coast)
