Govt will work in interest of teacher unions – Education Minister

The Minister for Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum following the affordable housing units promised teachers on Tuesday has said the central government is committed to working in the interest of teacher unions in the country.

Dr Adutwum disclosed this in his address at the 6th Quadrennial (53rd) National Delegates Conference of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi.

“We are determined to continue working together with GNAT in the interest of teachers and general education in our beloved country,” the Member of Parliament for Bosomtwe Constituency told teachers at the GNAT conference.

The Education Minister joined President Nana Addo among other education sector stakeholders at the Delegates Conference under the theme: “GNAT @ 90: Surviving as a Reliable and Vibrant Teacher Union in the 21st Century.

He at the event encouraged teachers to have faith in His Excellency Akufo-Addo as all the promises he has made including the construction of approximately 10,000 affordable housing units will be fulfilled before 2024.

“I am here today to introduce to you our guest speaker and somebody that I refer to as a promise keeper, he promised to do the impossible to make sure teachers have the best of working conditions,” the Education Minister stated.

The Teaching Minister commending Ghanaian teachers for their contribution to the education sector particularly amid the global coronavirus pandemic argued that they are the best in the world and can not be compared.

In a related development, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has debunked reports circulating on various social media platforms indicating teacher and nurse training allowance from this academic year has been scrapped.

Kwasi Kwarteng, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) for the Education Ministry in a statement copied to EducationWeb.com.gh said the report is fabricated news to misinform the general public, trainee teachers and nurses.

“The Ministry of Education (MoE) has not engaged in any consultations whatsoever regarding the cancellation of the teacher and nurse trainees allowance,” the Ministry of Education (MoE) Spokesperson said later on Friday.

He indicated President Nana Akufo-Addo led government is committed to paying the allowance to public Colleges of Education (CoE) teachers and trainee nurses to support them through the course of their school training.