About 98.53 percent of the total government subvention of GH¢937million to public tertiary institutions for 2014 went into the payment of salaries and wages, leaving under two percent for acquisition of assets, goods and services to train students, data from the National Council for Tertiary Education has shown. Between 2007 and 2014, there has been an average of about 870 percent increase in compensation paid to academic staff working in all the public tertiary institutions.

In 2013 there was an allocation of GH¢485million by government to tertiary institutions, out of which GH¢472 million representing 97 percent was spent on compensation.

In 2012 GH¢470million was allocated; however, GH¢454million of the said amount representing 96 percent was used in paying salaries and benefits for staff of the public universities.

The inadequacy of the subvention percentage used in acquisition of assets and services for training the growing number of students has raised questions about the adequacy of facilities for teaching and learning in the country’s public universities.

Studies have shown that: “The lack of adequate academic and residential facilities means that these institutions have to embark on highly selective admission procedures".

Currently, there is about 4,117 teaching staff in all the ten polytechnics and the eight major public universities teaching 181,404 students -- 53,078 in polytechnics and 128,326 in public universities. A recent B&FT analysis of data provided by the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE) indicates that of the total academic staff in universities, 317 are professors/associate professors while 514 are senior lecturers, with 1,490 and 354 being lecturers and assistant lecturers respectively.