Parliament passes bill to establish National Defence University

Ghana is set to have a National Defence University after Parliament approved the National Defence University Bill, 2026.

The new institution is expected to serve as a specialised university for defence, security, research and policy training.

It will bring together the tertiary education programmes currently run by the Ghana Armed Forces and place them under one coordinated university structure.

The university will offer diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD programmes.

These programmes will serve military personnel as well as civilians working in areas connected to national security, defence and peace operations in Ghana and across Africa.

For years, the Ghana Armed Forces has been working towards the establishment of a dedicated university for higher learning in defence studies.

Although some military training institutions have been running postgraduate programmes for more than two decades, they have done so under mentorship arrangements with established universities.

These institutions include the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College, the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, the National College of Defence Studies and Military Health Institutions.

They have been accredited by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, but they did not have full authority to independently award their own certificates and degrees.

A review of the military’s educational institutions, facilities and academic programmes later led GTEC to recommend that the proposed university be granted a Presidential Charter.

The Charter will allow the National Defence University to award certificates, diplomas and degrees for programmes accredited by GTEC.

Following that recommendation, the President directed the Ministry of Defence and the Military High Command to take steps to establish the university under the Education Regulatory Bodies Act, 2020, Act 1023.

Parliament’s Joint Committee, which considered the Bill, described it as an important development for defence and security education in Ghana.

According to the Committee, the law will provide the legal and administrative foundation for transforming existing military institutions into a world-class university.

It said the university would strengthen national security and regional stability through research, capacity building and policy development.

The Committee also noted that the Bill preserves the discipline and special character of military education while promoting proper academic governance.

“The Joint Committee is satisfied that the Bill strikes an appropriate balance between preserving the unique character and discipline of military institutions while upholding the highest standards of academic excellence and governance,” the report stated.

With the Bill now passed, the process will move to the next stage for the formal establishment and operationalisation of the National Defence University.

When completed, the institution is expected to become a major centre for training, research and professional development in defence and security studies.