The Catholic Bishops of Ghana have issued a firm and far-reaching warning over what they describe as a serious threat to the moral and cultural foundations of Ghana’s education system, following the circulation of a controversial Senior High School Teachers’ Manual.
In a strongly worded pastoral statement issued on Friday, January 16, 2026, the Bishops expressed deep concern about a Year-2 Physical Education and Health Teachers’ Manual that contained definitions and concepts “inconsistent with Ghana’s cultural, biological and moral understanding of the human person.”
The development triggered public anxiety across the country, with parents, educators and civil society groups raising alarm over what they feared was the quiet introduction of ideas that undermine Ghana’s traditional understanding of family life, personhood and moral formation.
While welcoming the swift intervention by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA), which clarified that the officially approved national curriculum does not include LGBTQ-related lessons, the Bishops stressed that the incident exposed troubling weaknesses in curriculum oversight and accountability.
“The family remains the first school of virtue, faith and conscience,” the Bishops stated, insisting that education must serve the full development of the human person—intellectual, moral, emotional, social and spiritual—while respecting parental authority and Ghana’s cultural identity.
NaCCA has since withdrawn the offending material and issued a revised manual aligned with national values, a move the Bishops commended. However, they cautioned that public trust in education cannot rest on damage control alone.
“This incident reveals deeper weaknesses in consultation, transparency and value alignment,” the Statement warned.
The Bishops also acknowledged the public advocacy of economist Prof. Godfred A. Bokpin and legal practitioner Mr. Moses Foh-Amoaning, whose calls for a formal apology and an independent review resonated with many Ghanaians concerned about the direction of education policy.
In a decisive step, the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference announced that its detailed position paper on the matter is ready for formal submission to the Government, the Ministry of Education, NaCCA and the Ghana Education Service. The aim, the Bishops stressed, is not confrontation but constructive engagement and lasting reform.
Outlining their core convictions, the Bishops reaffirmed that parents are the primary educators of their children, learning must be age-appropriate, and curriculum development must reflect Ghana’s cultural and moral values. They also called for inclusive, democratic processes involving parents, educators, religious bodies and traditional authorities.
Describing education as a “sacred trust,” the Bishops warned that when learning materials drift away from Ghana’s moral roots, the result is not enlightenment but confusion.
They called for a comprehensive audit of curriculum development processes, the establishment of ethical oversight committees, stronger parental involvement, and open communication by education authorities.
“Education is not merely about producing skilled workers,” the Bishops concluded. “It is about forming upright citizens, guided by conscience, rooted in truth, and committed to the common good.”
