By Benjamin Nii Nai Anyetei
Africa Education Watch (EduWatch) has warned that persistent underfunding of Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) continues to undermine Ghana’s efforts to build a skilled workforce.
Despite growing evidence that skills-oriented education is critical for youth employment and economic transformation, Ghana’s funding structure for TVET remains inadequate.
The financing gap is noticeable when one considers for instance, the annual cost to provide adequate practical training materials for a welding student. At the present cost of about GH¢9,000 per student, government funding at the moment under the Free TVET policy, provides just GH¢33 per student for such materials.
Presenting at the 2025 Education Financing Conference under the theme “Fixing the Foundation: Rethinking TVET Financing for Quality and Equity”, the Executive Director of EduWatch, Kofi Asare, revealed that Ghana’s second cycle education system produces about 500,000 graduates annually, yet only 10 per cent enrol in skills-oriented programmes in Technical and Vocational Institutions (TVIs).
Although participation has increased from 6 per cent in 2020, Mr Asare noted that Ghana still lags far behind the European average of 45 per cent, where strong TVET systems play a key role in reducing youth unemployment. He attributed the low enrolment primarily to inadequate and poorly structured financing.
According to EduWatch, Ghana’s spending on TVET averaged just 2.4 per cent of total education expenditure between 2017 and 2022, well below what is required to sustain quality skills development. Analysis of the 2025 education budget shows that funding remains heavily skewed towards basic education, tertiary institutions and administrative management, leaving TVET with a disproportionately small share.
“This allocation pattern reinforces the chronic underfunding of skills development, even as evidence mounts that TVET is essential for employability and economic transformation,” Mr Asare stated.
EduWatch further highlighted that internationally, TVET costs between 22 and 28 per cent more per student than general secondary education due to its practical and equipment-intensive nature. In Ghana, however, the cost difference is estimated at just 11 per cent, a gap the organisation says reflects underinvestment rather than efficiency.
Data presented showed that the average annual cost of practical learning materials is about GH¢6,500 per learner, yet the Free TVET policy provides only about GH¢413 per student. This leaves an estimated 94 per cent financing gap, forcing institutions to conduct only six practical sessions per year instead of the required 20.
As a result, Ghana’s TVET system has become theory-heavy, with about 70 per cent theory and 30 per cent practical training, contrary to the Competency-Based Training (CBT) model which requires 70–80 per cent practical learning. This, EduWatch warned, produces graduates who lack the skills to operate modern industrial tools, compelling employers to retrain them at additional cost.
The financing shortfall has also translated into severe infrastructure and furniture deficits across TVIs. Nationally, EduWatch estimates shortages of over 206,000 student desks, 116,000 dormitory beds, and significant gaps in dining furniture. Every region recorded at least a 45 per cent deficit in one category, with the North East Region reporting a 100 per cent shortage in dining furniture in its TVIs.
In addition, the country faces a national deficit of 1,056 workshops, the core facilities required for hands-on CBT training, further constraining effective practical instruction.
EduWatch also raised concerns about digital exclusion in TVET institutions. Only 10 out of 261 public TVET institutions (3.8 per cent) currently have access to the internet, while over 96 per cent operate without reliable connectivity. There is also an estimated shortage of 3,425 computers nationwide, with government-supplied tablets described as unsuitable for TVET programming and digital skills training.
EduWatch and the African Centre for Economic Transformation (ACET) cite inadequate practical training as the top hiring challenge identified by employers.
According to Mr Asare, the problem stems from Ghana’s heavy reliance on the public budget, the use of SHS costing models for TVET, and a funding framework that does not reflect the true cost differences across trades.
“You can’t power a diesel car with petrol,” he remarked, stressing the mismatch between TVET needs and current financing structures.
To address the challenges, EduWatch recommended a comprehensive overhaul of TVET financing, including re-costing Free TVET by trade, increasing TVET’s share of the education budget to at least 10 per cent, and introducing a Skills Development Levy to resource a dedicated TVET Fund.
Other proposals include legislating and operationalising the TVET Fund, supporting TVIs to establish endowment funds, and incentivising industry participation through public-private partnerships for equipment, workshops and digital infrastructure.
EduWatch says without decisive reforms, Ghana risks continuing to produce TVET graduates who are ill-equipped for the modern labour market, undermining national development goals.
