Education Minister orders GTEC halt to unauthorized university fee increases

The Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has directed the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) to immediately instruct all public universities to stop any unauthorized increases in tuition fees.

The directive follows reports that some universities had arbitrarily raised fees after the launch of the government’s “No Fees Stress Policy”, which offers free tertiary education to first-year students and persons with disabilities.

Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament on Monday, November 3, 2025, Mr. Iddrisu expressed concern that certain universities were exploiting the policy to impose unjustified fee adjustments.

“Believe me, my most impactful launch as a minister was when the No Fees Stress Policy was launched; I had a good sleep because this was an impactful social intervention of the President,” he said.

He cautioned institutions against abusing the initiative, stressing that no university has the mandate to raise fees without GTEC’s approval.

“Many of you MPs sitting here know how much you spend on paying school fees when the period comes. But this is to send a caution: GTEC is here. I have seen some schools increasing their fees because the government said it is absorbing them. We will not accept that. So make sure you issue consequential instructions to schools not to take advantage of that,” Mr. Iddrisu warned.

The minister reaffirmed the government’s commitment to equitable access to higher education, emphasizing that public institutions must align with the administration’s goal of reducing the financial burden on students and families.

In a related development, Mr. Iddrisu revealed that the Ministry of Education is reviewing the existing policy requiring private universities to obtain a presidential charter within 10 years of establishment.

He explained that the review follows appeals from private institutions seeking additional time to adequately prepare for independent operations.