Former National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) Director-General, Dr Prince Hamid Armah, has challenged President John Mahama’s claim that there was never a policy to introduce Arabic and Chinese as foreign languages in Ghanaian schools.

President Mahama recently said the matter should be put to rest because Cabinet had not approved such a policy.

However, Dr Armah, a former Deputy Minister for Housing and Kwesimintim MP, said actions by the Education Ministry and its agencies suggest otherwise.

According to him, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu publicly announced plans to make Chinese and Arabic compulsory foreign languages at the secondary school level.

Dr Armah said the Minister subsequently commissioned NaCCA to develop the curriculum, leading to the mobilisation of 160 writers and reviewers.

He said the curriculum was completed in July 2026 and formally presented to the Education Minister, with Arabic and Chinese included as foreign language options.

Dr Armah added that the curriculum was later referred to the Ghana Education Service (GES) for review ahead of implementation.

He argued that the government’s position changed after concerns were raised about the proposed policy.

He further claimed that NaCCA had trained teachers to implement the Chinese curriculum shortly before President Mahama’s statement that no such policy existed.

Dr Armah questioned who authorised the Education Minister to announce the policy, NaCCA to mobilise experts and develop the curriculum, and GES to review it if there was no policy.

He also questioned why teachers were trained before concerns about the availability of Chinese-language teachers had been resolved.

“Cabinet approval may be the final step, but Cabinet approval does not erase the months of work that happened before it,” he said.

Dr Armah maintained that the absence of Cabinet approval does not invalidate the work already undertaken by government institutions.

“The record is clear: The Minister spoke. NaCCA delivered. GES received it. Teachers were trained. That is not a rumour. That is a government caught implementing a policy it now denies,” he said.

By: Esther Padmore Amonoo