A critical review of the relationship between academic freedom and democracy in Ghana’s public universities: From pre-independence to the Fourth Republic

Abstract

The present work undertakes a critical assessment of academic freedom at Ghana’s public universities. Attention is placed on how the laws enacted to regulate the functioning of public universities have influenced or are likely to influence respect for academic freedom in public universities in Ghana. The paper seeks to articulate a correlation between the democratic credentials and the level of respect for academic freedom on the country’s university campuses. Three key decisions taken by the present government which threaten academic freedom are discussed. They are: the incidents leading to the closure of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in October 2018; the tensions arising in the Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG); and the unsuccessful attempt by the government to enact the Public Universities Bill 2020. To deal with the threat to academic freedom through managerialism, the paper calls for the democratisation of academic freedom on university campuses. This is premised on the fulfilment of responsibilities attached to the enjoyment of academic freedom by members of the academic community—the university, academics and students—towards each other. The place of the State, as the principal dutybearer in the academic freedom matrix, is considered as pivotal in facilitating this process.