National Tenants Union warns housing crisis is threatening access to higher education

The National Tenants Union of Ghana has warned that the country’s worsening accommodation challenges are making access to higher education increasingly difficult, particularly for students from low-income households.

Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Afternoon Ghana on Thursday, May 7, 2026, the Union’s Director of Communications and Corporate Affairs, Reindolf Afrifa Oware, described Ghana’s housing situation as a full-blown crisis.

“When it comes to housing, we have moved from this housing challenge in Ghana to housing crisis,” he said.

According to him, Ghana’s rent laws have become outdated and difficult to enforce, exposing tenants and students to arbitrary rent increases and poor living conditions.

“The law is not functional. The system that has been built, which is the Rent Control Department, is equally almost incapable,” he stated, citing inadequate staffing and logistical challenges facing the department.

Afrifa Oware made the remarks during discussions on rising hostel fees on university campuses and increasing rent charges in Accra.

He revealed that a recent inspection exercise at some student hostels uncovered overcrowded rooms and accommodation fees that many students struggle to afford.

“In theory, it is illegal because it is overcrowded,” he said.

“How can you give a space eight by four feet and then you have four people occupying this?”

He also criticised hostel operators who ask students to vacate their rooms during vacation periods, only for the same rooms to be rented out to sandwich students.

“The space that you have paid for, when school vacates, you pack out everything and that same space is given out to sandwich students,” he said. “That’s thievery.”

The tenant advocate argued that rising accommodation costs are gradually becoming a barrier to education.

“Housing should support education, but not stand in its way,” he stressed.

Afrifa Oware called on government to invest in student accommodation infrastructure and strengthen the Rent Control Department to effectively enforce existing laws.

He further proposed partnerships between government and the private sector to develop more affordable hostels around university campuses.

“There are land banks around most of these campuses. Government should engage the private sector to help provide good accommodation for students,” he said.

He also urged tenants to insist on tenancy agreements and rent cards from landlords to safeguard their rights in the event of disputes.

According to him, many tenants remain unaware of their rights and are frequently intimidated by landlords and agents.

“A lot of people don’t know their rights, so they are always bullied around,” he said.