The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has instructed all public universities to reopen for the 2026/2027 academic year by Friday, 16 October 2026, with lectures required to start on Monday, 19 October.
The directive, issued despite ongoing industrial action by university staff, was contained in a letter dated 13 October 2026 and addressed to the Vice-Chancellors of all public universities.
GTEC said it was communicating an instruction from the Minister for Education, also issued on 13 October, making the reopening compulsory.
Strike-related disruption acknowledged
The Commission recognised the administrative difficulties caused by industrial action involving the Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) and TUSAAG.
However, it said the Ministry of Education had warned that the indefinite suspension of academic activities could have serious consequences for students’ academic progress, university operations, the national delivery of tertiary education and international academic partnerships.
GTEC added that the government had begun discussions with GAUA’s leadership to resolve outstanding grievances. The engagements involve the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), with the aim of accelerating a settlement.
Universities given specific deadlines
Under the instruction, every public university must reopen no later than Friday, 16 October 2026, even if it had previously announced a later date.
University Governing Councils and Management have also been told to ensure that lectures begin on Monday, 19 October 2026, without fail.
Members of GAUA are being asked to return to their administrative duties while good-faith negotiations between the government and the Association continue.
Universities must additionally ensure that key student services are ready before the academic year resumes. Halls of residence, academic libraries, departmental registration desks and other essential support facilities are required to be fully staffed and operational by Thursday, 15 October 2026.
GTEC said the preparations were necessary to support student registration and allow academic activities to restart smoothly.
The order follows decisions by some institutions to delay their reopening because of the strike. Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) had earlier announced that it would postpone its reopening indefinitely.
KNUST had been due to reopen on 13 October, but said the decision was taken because of the GAUA strike.
