Education policy think tank Eduwatch has raised concerns over the government’s decision to establish a new College of Education in the Jomoro Municipal, describing the move as poorly aligned with existing capacity and national needs.

In a statement issued on April 1, the group argued that the proposed institution lacks empirical justification, particularly given what it says is significant underutilisation of existing facilities within the sector.

Eduwatch pointed to the Enchi College of Education in the neighbouring Aowin Municipality, noting that the institution is currently operating below capacity due to admission caps introduced by the Ministry of Education in 2022.

It further highlighted that the Western Region already hosts four Colleges of Education, alongside distance learning programmes run by the University of Cape Coast, all contributing to the production of trained teachers.

Beyond the regional context, Eduwatch raised concerns about what it described as excess capacity at the national level.

According to the group, Ghana’s public teacher training institutions, including the University of Education Winneba, University of Ghana and University for Development Studies, are already producing more than twice the number of teachers required annually.

This, the group said, has contributed to a growing unemployment challenge, with over 60,000 licensed teachers reportedly without jobs since 2023.

“Establishing additional public Colleges of Education to produce more teacher graduates is not labour market responsive and risks worsening graduate unemployment,” the statement noted.

Eduwatch also drew attention to a number of stalled and uncompleted projects within existing Colleges of Education, some dating back to 2012, arguing that the government should prioritise completing these facilities and improving teaching and learning resources.

With Ghana facing an estimated GH¢16 billion annual education financing gap, the group maintained that the decision to establish a new college does not reflect prudent use of limited public resources.

It has therefore called on the Ministry of Education to reconsider the plan and instead focus on optimising the capacity of existing institutions, including reviewing admission quotas where necessary to meet actual demand.