The General Secretary of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Thomas Musah, says inadequate funding for basic education is forcing some teachers and headteachers to use their personal salaries and resources to keep schools functioning.
According to him, teachers and school heads in some basic schools are personally financing essential materials and other needs to ensure teaching and learning continue.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Monday, September 7, 2026, Mr Musah said the situation reflects the serious funding challenges confronting basic education, particularly at the kindergarten, primary and Junior High School (JHS) levels.
“On authority, I can tell you that when it comes to the basic schools, the teachers and the heads, they use their money to get education going over there. They invest there. Some of them use their salaries to get the work done over there,” he said.
GNAT Raises Concern Over Education Funding
Mr Musah also raised concerns about how resources are distributed across the education sector.
He said his assessment suggests that only about 9% of the Ministry of Education’s budget is allocated to basic education, compared with approximately 62% for senior high schools (SHS).
He attributed the disparity partly to the political attention surrounding senior high school education, arguing that successive governments have placed greater emphasis on the sector because of its political significance.
“SHS has become a political tool,” he said.
According to Mr Musah, both the NDC and NPP have sought to provide the necessary resources for senior high school education, but he believes basic education requires greater attention.
‘Basic Education Is the Foundation’
The GNAT General Secretary stressed that basic education forms the foundation of the country’s education system and that challenges at that level could have long-term consequences for students’ academic development.
He urged policymakers and other stakeholders to pay closer attention to conditions in kindergarten, primary and junior high schools, particularly the adequacy and timely disbursement of capitation grants.
Beyond funding, Mr Musah identified persistent infrastructure deficits as another major challenge facing basic education.
BECE Placement Challenges
His comments come amid concerns over the transition of students from basic to second-cycle education following the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
About 55,000 candidates who sat the examination reportedly did not meet the requirements for automatic placement into senior high and senior high technical schools.
The Coordinator of the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) Secretariat, Sherif Sulemana, said about 565,000 of the nearly 620,000 candidates who sat the examination qualified for placement.
Mr Musah said the figures should prompt renewed attention to the conditions under which children receive their basic education.
He stressed that sustained investment in basic education is critical to strengthening the foundation of the education system, improving learning outcomes and ensuring that children are adequately prepared for the next stage of their education.
