The Minister of Education, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, has urged public universities to reopen by Sunday, October 18, 2026, expressing optimism that the dispute over market premium payments involving the Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) will be resolved by Friday, October 16.
The strike has disrupted admissions, registration and accommodation arrangements at public universities, with the University of Ghana and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology postponing their reopening dates.
In a radio interview on Accra-based Joy FM on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, Mr Iddrisu said he was optimistic that the negotiations would produce a resolution in time for the universities to resume academic activities.
"It is my strong view that the universities must reopen not later than Sunday this week," he said.
He also said the government was taking seriously a proposal for student rent loans through the Student Loan Trust to help address the cost of accommodation.
Mr Iddrisu said the association had raised five issues during its meeting with the government on Monday, October 12, including market premium payments, book and research allowances, and post-retirement benefits.
He explained that salary negotiations fell outside the mandate of the Ministry of Education and were the responsibility of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission. According to him, the Commission's chief executive believed parity in market premium payments was possible, although this would not mean equating university administrators with members of the University Teachers Association of Ghana.
"Professors are professors, and administrators are administrators," he said.
Mr Iddrisu said the market premium dispute was likely to be resolved between Tuesday and Friday. "It probably will be resolved between today and Friday," he said, adding, "I'm very optimistic about it."
He said the Commission had assured him it could resolve the matter and that he expected a letter from it, possibly on Tuesday. The Commission's chief executive, he added, needed to obtain a mandate from the Minister of Finance before proceeding.
On the outstanding book and research allowance of about GH¢12 million, Mr Iddrisu said he had seen a payment warrant and that the remaining step was for the money to reach the accounts of the affected members. "For GAUA, we're almost there," he said.
He said he had urged the union to suspend the strike and return to the negotiating table, assuring members that any agreed arrears would be paid.
Mr Iddrisu warned that the disruption to the academic calendar would be difficult to reverse. He explained that the strike began in August, when the universities were on break, which delayed its impact until institutions prepared to reopen.
He said he was surprised by the industrial action, as was the Commission's chief executive, because he understood the association had been the first to begin negotiations. According to him, the union argued that the gap between the market premiums paid to its members and those paid to UTAG members had widened after the Commission concluded negotiations with UTAG. He said this might have contributed to the decision to strike.
Mr Iddrisu acknowledged the union's right to industrial action but said any strike must comply with the law. He added that the Ministry of Education had more than 385,000 workers on the government payroll, making staff morale a concern for him.
The association has said it will consult its members on the outcome of Monday's discussions before deciding whether to suspend the strike, and had indicated that it expected to communicate its decision after Tuesday's consultations. Before the meeting, the president of the association's University of Ghana chapter said the union would not be persuaded by assurances alone.
In August, the association said teaching senior members received an average market premium of about GH¢10,000, compared with about GH¢4,718 for non-teaching senior members.
On student accommodation, Mr Iddrisu said the president of the National Union of Ghana Students had met him on Monday and presented a proposal for rent-related loans through the Student Loan Trust. "I listened to him very well and I've taken note of it, and I'm taking it seriously," he said. He did not announce an approved loan scheme.
Mr Iddrisu said the main challenge facing students was no longer school fees, following the introduction of the government's No Fees Stress policy, which provides free tertiary education for first-year students and persons with disabilities. He said the poor maintenance of public university halls and the lack of investment in student accommodation had created opportunities for private hostel operators to charge high rents.
On his proposal to limit annual rent increases, the minister said he had linked the proposed adjustments to inflation and was careful not to present a flat increase of five to 10 per cent as an approved policy. He said a committee involving the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, vice-chancellors and student representatives would consider the proposal. The committee could recommend keeping rents unchanged for four years.
"It remains a proposal," he said, explaining that his aim was to give students and their families greater certainty when planning their expenses.
Mr Iddrisu said universities needed to negotiate better terms with private hostel operators. "They just come and milk our students. We don't find that acceptable," he said.
The NUGS president has also raised concerns about hostel charges, saying some facilities did not offer value for the rents demanded, while cautioning against treating all hostel operators alike. The proposed five to 10 per cent range remains a suggestion and has not been approved as a limit on rent increases.
In May, Mr Iddrisu announced the formation of a committee to investigate rising hostel costs following inspections by the Rent Control Department. NUGS had petitioned the department in April over what it described as exploitative hostel pricing.
