News
‘More than 2m Ghanaians have varying degrees of disability’
More than 2 million Ghanaians, aged five years and above, have varying degrees of difficulty in performing daily activities, Professor Samuel K. Hayford of the University of Education, Winneba, has disclosed.
He said the figure, pegged at 2,098,138, represented a higher prevalence among females (8.8 per cent) compared to males (6.7 per cent), according to data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
Visual impairment remains the most prevalent form of disability in Ghana, affecting 4.6 per cent of males and 4.0 per cent of females nationwide.
The Professor of Special Education presented the data at the 42nd Annual Workshop in Accra for Heads of Special Schools, on the theme: ‘Inclusive Education in Ghana: The Role of Special Schools.’
He said the GSS 2021 report revealed that 150,000 persons aged five years and above had severe to profound disabilities, including non-expressive communication (17,577), self-neglect (28,598), unintelligible speech (15,196), immobility (33,778), deafness (19,448), and blindness (35,642).
“Five of Ghana’s 16 regions – North East, Bono, Western North, Savannah, and Oti – lacked special education facilities such as special schools or resource and assessment centres,” he noted.
In addition, four districts; Gushegu (59.4 per cent), North Gonja (55.8 per cent), Central Gonja (54.0 per cent), and Karaga (51.9 per cent), had more than half of all children aged five to 15 years who had never been to school.
Prof. Hayford said Ghana’s 2015 Inclusive Education Policy defined inclusive education as “a system that accommodates all learners, irrespective of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic, or other conditions.”
He likened the role of special schools in education to intensive care units in health facilities, indicating that while inclusion was key, there would always be a need for specialised institutions to support learners with profound and pervasive needs.
Prof. Hayford, however, pointed out several implementation challenges, including negative societal attitudes and stigma, gaps in teacher training, limited resources, inadequate teaching materials, assistive technology, and infrastructure deficits.
“Many mainstream schools still lack accessible buildings and facilities, while classrooms are overcrowded, and there are inadequate assessment centres and professionals to identify and support learners with disabilities,” he explained.
To address the gaps, Prof. Hayford proposed increased investment in special schools to enable them to support mainstream schools in meeting the needs of learners with disabilities. —GNA
A 30-year-old man has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour by the Bekwai Circuit Court for his role in a 2022 robbery at a mining site at Manso Akwasiso in the Ashanti South Region.
The convict, Dominic Ofori, also known as Fanta, was arrested on 16th February 2026 after years on the run. He pleaded guilty before the Bekwai Circuit Court to robbery contrary to Section 149 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 Act 29, and was accordingly sentenced to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour.
On March 20, 2022, the Manso Adubia District Police received intelligence that a group of armed men from Manso Abodom were planning to attack a mining site at Manso Akwasiso to rob the owner of gold concentrate. Acting on the information, police mounted a coordinated operation and laid an ambush at the site.
At about 5:30 pm the same day, four-armed men arrived at the site, fired indiscriminately, and robbed the miners of their gold concentrate. The police team on surveillance intervened, resulting in an exchange of gunfire.
Three of the suspects, Abu Abubakar, Musah Latif, and Gideon Takyi, sustained gunshot wounds and were pronounced dead on arrival at St Martins Catholic Hospital at Agroyesum. Dominic Ofori escaped at the time but was later arrested and put before the court.
The Ashanti South Regional Police Command has assured the public of its continued commitment to combating violent crimes and bringing offenders to justice.
The Ashanti Regional Police Command has arrested 45-year-old Isaac Boafo, also known as “Duabo King,” for allegedly publishing false news intended to cause fear and panic.
Police said the arrest follows a viral TikTok video in which Boafo claimed that four officers at the Central Police Station in Kumasi engaged in inappropriate conduct with commercial sex workers during night patrols in Asafo.
Officers from the Police Intelligence Directorate (Ashanti Region) apprehended Boafo after receiving intelligence about the video.
During questioning, he admitted to creating the video to attract views and engagement online, and acknowledged that he could not prove the allegations.
Boafo also admitted making comments about the President of the Republic for content purposes and could not defend those statements.
He has been formally charged and is in detention as investigations continue.
The Ashanti Regional Police have warned the public against publishing or sharing false information on social media, noting that such acts can cause fear, panic, and damage reputations.
They said anyone found engaging in similar conduct will face legal action.
By: Jacob Aggrey
