Emeritus Professor Ernest Aryeetey, former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, has cautioned that Ghana’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) system will continue to fail if it remains driven by political motives instead of sound educational policy.

Prof. Aryeetey said while TVET holds great potential to transform Ghana’s education and job market, its impact has been limited by poorly designed reforms and excessive political interference.

“TVET—properly structured—is a good idea,” he stressed.

“But when you do TVET for the wrong reasons, as I have seen in this country, it can lead nowhere. Many of our reforms in education have been politically motivated; that’s why we’re not getting the results.”

He urged policymakers to adopt evidence-based approaches and consult experts who understand how to make vocational education effective, rather than using the system to score political points.

According to Prof. Aryeetey, most of the reforms introduced in recent years have focused on “micro-level” adjustments that fail to address the deeper structural issues affecting the education sector.

He argued that Ghana’s education system has become overly focused on pushing students into universities, instead of nurturing practical and technical skills that are crucial for national development.

“There is enough research in Ghana and across Africa that shows the kind of education needed to produce productive, versatile students,” he said. “They don’t need a university degree to be able to do things. But we’ve built a system that funnels everyone into universities — it is wrong, and it will always be wrong.”

He made these comments on Channel One TV on the back of renewed debate over the government’s investment in TVET infrastructure and the effectiveness of recent reforms under the Education Ministry.