Emeritus Professor Ernest Aryeetey, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana, has criticised the current state of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Ghana, warning that the system is poorly structured and politically driven, and therefore failing to achieve its intended goals.
Speaking on The Point of View on Channel One TV on Monday, October 20, 2025, Prof. Aryeetey said TVET has immense potential to transform the economy if implemented correctly, but successive governments have used it for political gain rather than national development.
“TVET—properly structured—is a good idea. But when you do TVET for the wrong reasons, as I have seen in this country, it leads nowhere,” he said. “If we want to make it work, there are experts in Ghana who know how to do it. Let’s let them lead instead of politicising the process.”
He stressed that Ghana’s education reforms must be evidence-based and guided by professionals who understand how to make vocational training relevant and effective, ensuring that students acquire practical, employable skills rather than being shaped by political promises.
The renowned economist also cautioned that many of Ghana’s ongoing education reforms are making the system worse, not better.
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“Most of my time in education has been spent fighting these types of micro-level reforms that simply worsen the situation,” he lamented. “There’s enough research in Ghana and across Africa showing how to design education—from basic to senior high level—that produces versatile and productive students.”
Prof. Aryeetey argued that the current system’s overemphasis on university education is misplaced.
“We’ve built a system that funnels everyone into universities. It is wrong, and it will always be wrong,” he said, adding that well-designed TVET and secondary education can produce competent, job-ready individuals without the need for university degrees.
He urged policymakers to depoliticise educational reforms, rely on expert guidance, and focus on long-term structural improvements that align education with Ghana’s economic and workforce needs.
Story By: Afia Ohenewaa Akyerem