44 teacher sexual abuse cases tracked since 2015; school heads feature in 40% of recent cases — JoyNews Research

JoyNews has documented at least 44 cases since 2015 involving teachers and heads of schools accused of sexually abusing students in Ghana. Headmasters now account for four out of every ten new cases, up from one in ten between 2015 and 2024. The review examined news reports, court records, and statements from the Ghana Education Service (GES). The investigations covered public, private, and Arabic schools of basic and senior high levels.

Of the 44 cases, 53 individuals were implicated, with every identified teacher being male. Gender Minister Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey stated that the government was collaborating with the police to arrest suspects, but no arrests have been reported in four cases since January 2025. Alleged pregnancy was a factor in three of the eight headmaster cases, compared to four of the 36 teacher cases.

No head of a senior high school has been convicted of sexual abuse, while two teachers have been convicted: Musa Mumuni of Ping Basic School in the Upper West Region, who served a 10-year sentence for defiling a 10-year-old, and George Agyekum, head of a private school in Accra, who received a 15-year sentence for defiling a 15-year-old.

Half of the cases, 22, were recorded in the four coastal regions: Greater Accra, Western, Central, and Volta. Greater Accra accounts for the majority with nine cases, followed by Ashanti (7), Eastern (6), and Western (6). Central has five cases, Savannah three, and Volta and Upper West two each. The coastal regions' high number of cases is likely due to the courts' jurisdiction rather than a higher prevalence of abuse.