The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has directed all public universities to reopen for the 2026/2027 academic year by Friday, 16 October 2026, with lectures scheduled to begin on Monday, 19 October, despite ongoing industrial action by university staff. In a letter dated 13 October 2026 and addressed to the Vice-Chancellors of all public universities, GTEC communicated a directive from the Minister for Education, issued on the same day, requiring all institutions to resume academic activities.
Although the Commission acknowledged the administrative difficulties arising from the industrial action by the Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) and the Technical University Senior Administrators Association of Ghana (TUSAAG), the Ministry of Education warned that the indefinite suspension of academic activities could have significant consequences for students’ academic progress, university operations, the delivery of tertiary education nationwide and international academic partnerships.
To resolve the impasse, GTEC disclosed that the government, through the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), has initiated engagements with the leadership of GAUA to fast-track discussions aimed at addressing the outstanding grievances.
Under the directive, universities must comply with the following:
Reopening: All public universities must reopen not later than Friday, 16 October 2026, regardless of any earlier decision to postpone.
Lectures: Governing Councils and Management must ensure lectures begin without fail on Monday, 19 October 2026.
Administrative duties: GAUA members are asked to resume their duties within the framework of the ongoing good-faith negotiations between the government and the Association.
Operational readiness: Halls of residence, academic libraries, departmental registration desks, and other essential student support facilities must be fully staffed and operational by Thursday, 15 October 2026, to ensure smooth registration and the resumption of academic activities.
The directive follows the postponement by some universities of their reopening because of the strike. The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), for example, earlier said it had indefinitely postponed its reopening, which had been scheduled for 13 October, because of the GAUA strike.
