The Ghana Education Service (GES) is expected to submit additional data to the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) to facilitate the processing of outstanding promotion arrears owed to teachers.

The Education Ministry says some data submitted by GES over the weekend has already been processed by CAGD, with further submissions required before payments can be made to the remaining eligible teachers.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Top Story, the Ministry’s Press Secretary, Hashmin Mohammed, said the government remained committed to resolving the issues that triggered the nationwide strike by the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and Pre-Tertiary Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG).

“The Ghana Education Service is supposed to furnish the Controller with more data so they can proceed with the payment of the remaining teachers who are yet to receive the payment of those arrears,” he said.

CAGD has separately said it had processed and paid 6,079 promotion cases submitted by GES, including applicable arrears effective January 1, 2026. The cases formed part of 58,620 expected submissions, with CAGD explaining that the remaining cases require the necessary documentation from GES before they can be validated and processed.

Mr Mohammed said Monday’s engagement with the teacher unions was expanded to include other government agencies because several of the issues raised fall outside the direct mandate of the Education Ministry.

The meeting brought together the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour, CAGD and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), alongside representatives of the three teacher unions.

He said each institution left the meeting with specific responsibilities.

The FWSC is expected to engage the unions on their conditions of service, while the Ministry of Labour will engage them on the implementation of the 20% Deprived Area Allowance.

Meanwhile, the Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu, has directed the Director-General of GES to ensure that CAGD receives the required data to facilitate the processing of the outstanding payments.

Despite the government's assurances, the unions have rejected calls to suspend the strike, insisting that they want concrete action on their demands.

GNAT’s Head of Salaries, Isaac Baah, said the unions had heard similar assurances before and would not return to the classroom on the basis of promises.

“Until we see the salary, the arrears reflecting on our payslips and crediting our accounts. Until we see that, we are not going back to school,” he said.

The three unions began the nationwide strike on Friday, September 25, citing unresolved concerns over promotion arrears, negotiations on a new Collective Agreement and the implementation of the Deprived Area Allowance.

The continued industrial action is disrupting teaching and learning in schools across the country, with reports from some regions showing pupils reporting to school without teachers.

The government has appealed to the unions to return to the classroom to protect the September-to-July academic calendar, which was recently restored.

However, the unions maintain that the return-to-work decision will depend on tangible progress on their demands.

For now, the immediate task for government is to ensure that GES submits the outstanding data and that CAGD can validate and process the eligible cases, while negotiations continue on the other unresolved conditions of service.