It appears the exodus of workers in pursuit of better opportunities in other countries is no longer confined to the health sector as it has now permeated into the education sector.

According to the Registrar, National Teaching Council, Dr Christian Addai-Poku, over 16,000 Ghanaian teachers applied for positions with the Department of Education in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2023.

The Registrar reported that as of June 13, 2023, around 10,000 applicants possessing Ghana Teacher Licences were certified to work in the UK, eliminating the need for additional assessment by the UK government.

Speaking on the alarming trend, Director of the Institute for Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), Professor Peter Quartey, urged the Ghanaian government to create more job opportunities for teachers to reduce the attrition rate.

He said most teachers who sought greener pastures did so because of unemployment, low wages, and poor working conditions, and he called on the authorities to address the issues and ensure improvement in learning outcomes.

Speaking in an interview, the Professor said that though the country could not stop migration, there was a need to manage the situation.

“If the country has excess teachers, then it can export, but in a coordinated manner to maximise the benefits for the country,” he said.

Prof Quartey said the government could institute measures and set a quota for teachers to migrate and pay remittances to the country as part of an agreement to defray the training cost.

He said a country like the Philippines had done that not only in the teaching space but the health sector and had received foreign inflows.