Accra, October 23, 2026: Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) has called for a nationwide audit of teacher-student sexual misconduct and safeguarding systems in Ghanaian secondary schools, following allegations of sexual abuse involving female students at Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS).
The education policy advocacy organisation is also demanding an independent investigation into allegations involving at least 16 female students and the school's headmaster, Zakaria Abdulai, to establish the full circumstances of the reported abuse and determine whether education officials failed to protect the students.
Kofi Asare, Executive Director of Eduwatch, made the calls in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), arguing that the investigation must go beyond the headmaster to examine the conduct of school, municipal, regional and other education officials whose actions or omissions may have allowed the alleged abuse to continue.
The organisation said a nationwide audit would help identify weaknesses in reporting procedures, institutional safeguards and accountability mechanisms, and establish what measures are required to protect students across the country.
Complaints reportedly preceded further incidents
The call follows an investigation by JoyNews and investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni, which documented allegations of repeated sexual abuse at Obuasi SHTS spanning more than a year.
According to the GNA report, the school's Girl Child Coordinator and safeguarding officer petitioned school management in February 2026, while five students reportedly lodged complaints with the Municipal Education Directorate in March.
Further incidents were allegedly reported in June and July, raising questions about how complaints were handled and whether established safeguarding and referral procedures were followed.
Eduwatch said these developments required investigators to examine the entire chain of responsibility, including the responses of school management and education authorities at municipal and regional levels.
Asare questioned whether the existing arrangements within the Ghana Education Service (GES) were sufficiently independent and effective to investigate the allegations and hold any responsible officials accountable.
Interdiction alone is not enough, Eduwatch says
Eduwatch welcomed the interdiction of Abdulai and the directive for a criminal investigation but maintained that administrative action against the headmaster would not, on its own, address the wider institutional concerns.
The organisation called for an independent external investigation to determine whether any officials failed to act on complaints, suppressed disclosures, discouraged students from reporting abuse or compromised safeguarding procedures.
Asare said officials credibly implicated in such conduct should, where warranted, be temporarily removed from relevant duties while investigations proceed, subject to due process. He also called for appropriate disciplinary sanctions against officials found culpable, with the outcomes made public.
The proposed investigation would therefore examine not only the alleged conduct of the headmaster but also whether institutional failures contributed to the students' exposure to harm.
44 other reported cases raise wider safeguarding concerns
The GNA report cited a JoyNews review that documented 44 reported cases in other schools involving teachers and school heads accused of sexually abusing students between January 2015 and October 2026.
Eduwatch cautioned that the figures did not establish the national prevalence of sexual abuse in schools. However, the organisation said the cases pointed to persistent concerns about prevention, reporting, investigations and accountability.
Asare warned that the actual scale of abuse could be greater because fear of retaliation, stigma and a lack of confidence in school reporting mechanisms could prevent students from speaking out.
The organisation urged the Ministry of Education and the GES to provide affected students with confidential medical, psychosocial, legal and educational support.
The calls place renewed attention on the responsibility of educational institutions to protect students, respond promptly to complaints and ensure that safeguarding procedures work in practice, rather than exist only as formal policies.
The allegations involving Obuasi SHTS remain subject to investigation. The questions of individual and institutional responsibility must be established through the appropriate processes.
