Former Deputy Minister of Education, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, says persistent underfunding of the education sector and a backlog of more than GH¢12 billion owed to the Ministry of Education are eroding the country’s learning outcomes.

Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen, Rev. Fordjour argued that the sector cannot deliver strong results when basic financial commitments, such as teacher allowances, remain outstanding.

“The best course of action is that funding must be released to the Ministry of Education to drive outcomes in our education system. Teachers should also be paid their allowances,” he stressed.

He insisted that the government must collaborate with teachers rather than blame them for declining academic performance, noting that they remain the backbone of quality education.

“The government should work with teachers instead of blaming them for students’ poor performance. Rather than assigning blame, the focus should be on motivating teachers to help students succeed,” he said.

Rev. Fordjour also called for stronger partnerships with mission schools, which he said consistently produce some of the nation’s top-performing students.

“The government should also build positive partnerships with mission schools because they often have the highest-performing students,” he added.