Ghana Education Service Bans Teachers From Using Students For Domestic Chores Following Obuasi SHTS Unrest

Introduction

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has announced a sweeping series of regulatory changes and disciplinary measures following recent violent disturbances at the Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS). In a decisive move to safeguard student welfare and restore institutional order, the GES has officially banned teachers from inviting students to residential bungalows for domestic chores, while also mandating strict new transparency rules regarding sexual abuse sanctions.

New Directives to Protect Students

The latest directives come in the wake of mounting pressure from civil society and advocacy groups, including the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) Women’s Forum, which recently demanded an impartial and thorough investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct at the Obuasi SHTS campus. In response to these concerns, education authorities are enforcing a zero-tolerance approach toward staff-student boundary violations.

Legal expert Minkah-Premo has strongly advocated for institutional accountability, emphasizing that all secondary educational facilities must visibly display comprehensive rules and explicit sanctions regarding sexual abuse. Concurrently, the GES confirmed that continuing students from Obuasi SHTS are scheduled to return to campus next week under heightened security and administrative oversight, as the school community works to recover from the recent unrest.

Key Takeaways

• GES explicitly bans teachers from utilizing students for personal household chores at residential bungalows.
• All educational institutions are now required to visibly display clear rules and sanctions regarding sexual abuse.
• Continuing students at Obuasi SHTS are slated to resume academic activities next week following recent violence.
• The GBA Women’s Forum continues to push for an independent and impartial inquiry into the alleged misconduct at the school.