Some 149 institutions running open distance learning across the country without accreditation have been closed down by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC).

According Director-General of GTEC, Professor Ahmed Abdulai Jinapor described the centres of such institutions as “unfit for purpose” during a two-day capacity building workshop on Ghana Open and Distance Learning ( ODL ) policy implementation strategies for national quality assurance and tertiary education stakeholders meeting in Accra last week.

He explained that what many institutions does cannot be considered distance learning,

“Unfortunately, distance education seems to be replaced with distance education. Distancing education manifesting in institutions moving across this country to replicate what is happening in traditional classrooms cannot be deemed as distance education.

“In fact, as we speak, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission has flagged some 149 distance learning centers that we think are not fit for purpose. These centers are found in second cycle institutions, institutions that are overstretched as a result of the double track.

“We have centers being organized in churches, public services, public works departments, and electricity companies. In fact, we cannot allow this to happen,” he stated.

He further emphasized that distance learning is not merely an alternative to conventional education but a central pillar for expanding access, promoting equity, and fostering innovation in tertiary education.

Consequently, a moratorium has been placed by the Commission allowing institutions time to complete the required processes and obtain accreditation to operate in the right setting.

“As a commission, we’ve issued a moratorium to all these institutions to teach our students in these centers and to seek accreditation for facilities that are fit for purpose. Today, we are launching this particular policy involving quality assurance.”

“What we’ve realized as a commission is that quality assurance in most of these institutions becomes overly transactional. Institutions do what they are supposed to do to please us and once we leave, then it’s business as usual. We cannot allow that,” he noted.

Commonwealth Consultant for the Open Distance Learning Policy , Professor Olugbemiro Jegede stressed the need for Ghana to reach a consensus on the definition of open distance learning and provide clear guidance for its implementation.

“What are you doing? Which is fantastic. However, we must begin from the beginning. And that’s where we think it’s better for us, not only to listen to aspects of the policy that has been put out, we should actually come to a concerted, a negotiated agreement as to what distance-learning means.”

“What does distance-learning mean? If I ask everybody, we’ll have more than 40 different answers. But we want to have a single, negotiated understanding of what distance-learning means, as well as what open-learning means. There’s a difference between distance-learning and open-learning,” he added.

Last month, operations at the Nyarkotey University College of Holistic Medicine and Technology were brought to a halt following a directive by GTEC

The order came after the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission’s investigations uncovered that Nyarkotey University College has been operating against the standards for tertiary education in the country. The university college is said to be offering an unapproved Bachelor of Technology (BTech) programme in Naturopathy and Holistic Medicine with various specializations.

According to the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, the university in question does not hold the required accreditation. The college has also been instructed to cease promoting the school through advertising until all regulatory requirements are fully met. The Authority has demanded that Nyarkotey University College fast-track the necessary processes to acquire the proper certification as a condition for resuming its academic services.

Speaking to the media on Friday, August 1, GTEC’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Jerry Sarfo, indicated that the University has been given until August 8 to provide evidence of adhering to the order from the Authority.

"We have asked the institution to shut down and provide evidence of the same latest by the 8th of August, so they are to cease operations, as it were, and not admit any more students until they have sought accreditation. We have also advised that should they wish to continue operations, then they are to initiate their accreditation processes immediately so that they can go through the processes for that to be done. For now, they are supposed to shut down the institution.

"Again, what we have asked them to do is that they pull down all adverts. They had a lot of advertisements; some of them they had placed on their billboards, some were on their website, and all that. They are to pull down all of those adverts, especially those advertising those tertiary education programmes there. So once the institution is being shut down, it goes down with all those things as well," the GTEC’s Director of Corporate Affairs added.

Meanwhile, the institution’s founder, Raphael Nyarkotey Obu, along with its registrar and director, was arrested on Wednesday, July 30, by the GTEC and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service. The institution’s founder has been stripped of the honorary title “Professor” and instructed to issue a public disclaimer disassociating himself from the title, as it lacks any legitimate basis.

“We have informed Mr. Nyarkotey to desist from using the title ‘Professor,’ as there is no evidence he earned it. He is also to issue a public disclaimer to that effect,” Mr Sarfo added.

GTEC has been working to ensure that all tertiary institutions in the country meet the required accreditation standards. In April, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission raised alarm over the increasing trend of individuals adopting honorary titles such as "Doctor" and "Professor" after receiving such recognitions from institutions in Ghana and abroad.

GTEC noted that these titles, often used by awardees, tend to confuse and mislead both the public and academic communities. The Commission said it is compelled to clarify its stance on the matter to safeguard academic integrity.

“In light of this trend, the Commission has observed the use of the titles Doctor (Dr) and Professor (Prof) by recipients of such awards. These practices are deemed misleading and serve to misinform both the academic community and the general public. Consequently, the Commission seeks to clarify its position on this matter for the benefit of the public and those affected,” the Commission said in a statement.

GTEC has explained that honorary degrees must only be awarded by accredited institutions and those recognized under Ghana’s higher education system. The Commission has also stressed that the title should be given to individuals who are deemed fit.

The Commission warned that using honorary titles as part of one’s official name or professional identity is improper and violates sections of the Education Regulatory Bodies Act, 2020 (Act 1023), along with other relevant laws.

“The Mandate of GTEC: Section 8 (3) d of the Education Regulatory Bodies Act mandates the Commission to regulate the use of higher education nomenclature and titles, including 'university,' 'college,' 'Emeritus,' 'Professor,' 'Doctor,' 'Chartered,' and related terms," the statement pointed out.

GTEC urged individuals to take personal responsibility by avoiding the misuse of honorary titles and cautioned stakeholders in the education sector to act with restraint when conferring such distinctions. GTEC is mandated to impose sanctions on individuals or institutions involved in practices that could erode the value of academic credentials or mislead the general public. Its general function is to apply the highest quality standards and relevance of teaching, learning and research programmes and outcomes;

The National Service Authority (NSA) in June raised concerns over some tertiary institutions' reluctance to renew their licenses. As such, the National Service Authority gave a 30-day ultimatum to the affected institutions to enable their students to be eligible for placement.

The Authority, in a press release dated Tuesday, June 17, cautioned that unaccredited tertiary institutions that miss the deadline to regularize their status will negatively impact their students’ chances of participating in the 2025/26 national service. According to the Authority, it received 135,990 submissions for this year from 122 tertiary institutions; however, 3,597 submissions are pending verification of accreditation.

"This figure is part of a total of 135,990 final-year Ghanaian students submitted by 122 tertiary institutions across the country. However, 3,597 of these submissions, representing graduates from 22 institutions, have not been processed, as those institutions are currently not accredited and remain unknown to the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC).

"NSA also urges institutions with expired accreditation to engage with GTEC and regularise their status within the next 30 days," it added. The NSA is yet to give details of the tertiary institutions that currently possess expired accreditation.