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The National Service Authority (NSA) has officially declined a request to deploy graduates from 13 tertiary institutions for the mandatory national service scheme due to a lack of proper accreditation. This decision follows a verification process which revealed that the affected schools have not secured or maintained the necessary credentials from the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC). The NSA Director-General, Ms. Ruth Dela Seddoh, confirmed that the refusal is a necessary measure to uphold the standards and legality of the national deployment process.
Among the institutions cited in the directive are the Multimedia Institute of Ghana and the Abbeam Institute of Technology, along with 11 other schools. According to the NSA, the decision to block these students is rooted in the need to maintain the integrity and transparency of the National Service Programme. By ensuring that only graduates from GTEC-recognized institutions are mobilized, the Authority protects the quality of the workforce assigned to various public and private sectors across the country.
The Authority has indicated that the current restriction is not necessarily permanent but is contingent upon the institutions regularizing their status. Ms. Seddoh emphasized that graduates from these 13 schools will have the opportunity to be mobilized for service once their accreditation issues are fully rectified and officially confirmed by GTEC. This development highlights the government's commitment to ensuring that all tertiary education providers adhere to national regulatory benchmarks to protect the interests of students and the public.
This move serves as a significant warning to prospective students and parents to verify the accreditation status of institutions before enrollment. For the affected graduates, the delay in national service deployment could impact their immediate career prospects, as a national service certificate is a legal requirement for formal employment in Ghana. The NSA continues to urge all educational institutions to prioritize their regulatory standing to avoid disenfranchising their students during the transition to the professional world.