President John Dramani Mahama has committed to a comprehensive review of the Single Spine Pay Policy and reforms to the three-tier pension scheme, responding to longstanding grievances from educators.
The assurances were delivered at the 54th National Delegates Conference of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), amid calls for better salaries, funding, and protection.
GNAT President Reverend Isaac Owusu highlighted teachers’ dedication while decrying inadequate conditions: “Many teachers struggle with salaries that do not reflect their hard work… It is incumbent upon us to address these issues head-on.”
He outlined four priorities:
Review of the Single Spine Pay Policy
Adequate funding for basic education
Pension reform
Enhanced teacher safety against assaults
Rev. Owusu declared 2026 a year of “zero tolerance” for attacks on teachers: “Should any individual or group attack any teacher without cause, we shall invoke ‘touch one, touch all.’ If we have to close down schools, we will.”
President Mahama described the current pay structure as “very crooked,” promising collaboration with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) for improvements: “We’re very willing to look at the whole salary structure again so that we are able to remunerate people better.”
On pensions, he pledged a dedicated working team to ensure security for retiring workers.
Regarding assaults, Mahama affirmed full support: “As for assault on teachers, I am with you one hundred percent. We will deal with it.”
