The National Tenants Union of Ghana has warned that the country’s worsening accommodation challenges are making higher education increasingly difficult for students, particularly those from low‑income backgrounds. 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 the housing situation as a full‑blown crisis. “When it comes to housing, we have moved from a challenge in Ghana to a crisis,” he said.
Afrifa‑Oware argued that Ghana’s rent laws are outdated and poorly enforced, leaving tenants and students exposed to arbitrary rent hikes and substandard living conditions. He pointed to the Rent Control Department as “almost incapable,” citing inadequate staffing and logistics.
His comments came during a discussion on rising hostel fees and rent charges in Accra. He revealed that a recent inspection of student hostels uncovered overcrowded rooms and accommodation costs that many students can scarcely 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 require students to vacate rooms during vacations, only for the same spaces 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 accommodation costs are gradually becoming a barrier to education. “Housing should support education, but not stand in its way,” he said.
Afrifa-Oware called on the government to invest in student accommodation and strengthen the Rent Control Department to enforce existing laws. He proposed partnerships between the government and the private sector to build 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 demand tenancy agreements and rent cards from landlords to protect themselves in disputes. According to him, many tenants are unaware of their rights and are often intimidated by landlords and agents. “A lot of people don’t know their rights, so they are always bullied around,” he said.
Source: Bernard Ralph Adams
