Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu, has told Parliament that teachers who accept postings to rural and deprived communities will now qualify for study leave with pay after just two years, instead of three.
He said the initiative is to attract and motivate teachers who are deployed to these communities.
“Mr. Speaker, I am happy to know that one of those incentives is the reduction in the number of years required to qualify for study leave.
“Originally, it was three years. We have reduced it now to 2 years so any person who accepts posting to a rural deprived area after two years of service can apply for a study leave with pay,” he stated on the floor of the House, July 2, 2026.
Announcing strategies adopted by government to improve rural teacher welfare, he also stated that government is committed to implementing a 20 percent rural posting allowance.
“Government is committed to rolling out the 20% salary we assured for rural posting allowance for teachers serving in rural and deprived areas,” he said.
The Minister assured that the Ministry of Finance, the Ghana Education Service and the Ministry of Education are working to ensure the implementation of the allowance.
He also added that work is progressing on the ‘Teacher Dabre’ housing initiative meant to provide affordable accommodation for teachers.
“We are currently engaged in some discussion to deploy the Teacher Dabre initiative of President Mahama which was in the NDC manifesto which will provide accommodation for teachers in rural areas to address the housing challenges that often affect teacher deployment and retention in those areas,” he stressed.
