Unemployed graduate teachers from the 2023 cohort have expressed profound disappointment regarding the government’s recent recruitment strategies.
Describing the current process as fundamentally flawed, the group is calling for urgent intervention to avert what they describe as impending chaos within the sector.
Speaking on Nyankonton Mu Nsem on Rainbow Radio, Godwin Agyei, president of the Unemployed 2023 Trained Teachers Association, maintained that his members must be treated as the absolute priority in this year’s recruitment cycle.
He argued that it is unjust to expect his batch to compete on equal footing with more recent graduates, noting that they have been idle at home for too long and cannot fairly compete with their juniors.
While the Ministry of Education has secured financial clearance to recruit at least 7,000 teachers nationwide—with a specific focus on those willing to serve in deprived areas—the scale of the intake has come under fire.
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu disclosed that the exercise will be open, competitive, and transparent, aimed at graduates from the 2023, 2024, and 2025 cohorts of the Colleges of Education.
The Ghana Education Service (GES) is scheduled to open its application portal on 10 April, with the recruitment process expected to conclude by 1 July.
However, Mr Agyei pointed out a significant disparity in the figures, noting that the 2023 batch alone comprises over 16,000 teachers. He argued that the plan to recruit only 7,000 individuals across three different years is grossly insufficient, adding that this number is not enough to absorb his group before moving to the next batch.
Consequently, the association is urging a temporary halt to the current proceedings.
The group lamented that politicians have consistently taken their plight for granted, suggesting that they will be forced to “advise themselves” regarding their future actions. Mr Agyei stressed that the 2023 batch must be the primary focus because the competitive approach the authorities wish to implement is unnecessary and suboptimal.
He further insisted that the government should open up the process and absorb all 2023 graduate teachers before considering any other batches, as their original posting period has already passed and they expect priority consideration.
He added that the proposed recruitment figure fails to cover even half of the 2023 trained teachers.
He condemned the situation as an act of “pure wickedness”, accusing the authorities of refusing to implement meaningful measures to improve the lives and career prospects of educators.
He also warned that there may be some form of abuse and favouritism, where if you have no connections with politicians and people in high places, you would not be considered.
