Education Minister clarifies government’s position on the definition of sex.

The Minister for Education, Hon Haruna Iddrisu, has stated the government’s position on the definition of sex. According to him, there should be no ambiguating in Ghana’s education system about how sex is defined.

“There should be no ambiguating whatsoever regarding the definitions of a man as in a man, a woman as in a woman, as in biological sex, and sex means biological sex, reference to man, woman, sex means reference to the biological sex, and the sex of a person at birth.

“And so, in every educational literature in Ghana, must reflect same. So, there should be no ambiguity whatsoever in the definition of a man, a woman, and sex. For our purposes, the sex of a person at birth holds,” he added.

The Minister made the statemen in Tamale during a training session on the Ghanaian Youth Handbook and the rollout of the Guidance and Counselling (G&C) framework, following public discussion around content in some educational materials.

He further indicated that “That depicts and reflects Ghanaian values and our norms. And that is how we want to bring up all Ghanaian learners in an environment that they appreciate,” he said, adding that “the morality of our society rests in the extent to which they uphold these values.”

Mr. Iddrisu said the focus should be on what benefits the country and its learners. “What is important is to answer the question, what is it that is good for Ghana, and good for Ghanaian teachers, and good for Ghanaian learners?” he asked.

The Minster said he had directed the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NACCA) to take full responsibility for the issue and act swiftly. “I’ve asked NACCA, the institution responsible, to take full responsibility for the controversy and to remedy it with urgency,” he added.

According to him, NACCA has determined that parts of the manual did not reflect Ghanaian values. “I’m told that NACCA has determined that the definition of gender identity contained in the manual is not reflective of Ghanaian values and culture and our norms,” he said.

His comments comes amid allegations by Member of Parliament for Assin South, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, that the government was promoting an LGBTQ agenda through teacher manuals and other teaching and learning materials (TLMs) in schools.

The controversy centred on a specific definition within the Year 2 Physical Education and Health (Elective) Teacher Manual, a supplementary guide developed in 2024 to aid teachers implementing the new SHS curriculum introduced last academic year.

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) has since withdrawn the printed copies of the Senior High School (SHS) teacher manual after acknowledging that certain content on “Gender Identity” in the Year 2 Physical Education and Health (Elective) Teacher Manual did not align with Ghanaian culture, norms, and values.

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