History

The Teachers Fund is a retirement supplement and solidarity scheme for the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) established by a Trust Deed in May 1998. The Fund started with a monthly deduction of GHC0.10 (¢1.000) as basic contributions from the salary of GNAT members through a check-off system.

The basic contribution was increased to GH₵ 0.50 (₵5,000.00) in February 2002 and GH₵2.50 (₵25,000.00) in October 2004. In February 2008, the basic contribution was further increased to GH₵5.00 and then to GH₵10.00 in January 2011. Effective March 2014, the basic contribution was GH₵20.00 and in January 2015 it was increased to GHC30.00. In February 2017, the basic contribution was GH₵50.00.
The basic contribution was further reviewed upwards to GHC100.00 with effect from January 2024.

The assets of the Fund have grown from just about GH₵ 1.50 million in May 1998 to GH₵3.225 billion, as at December 2023 represented by investments in treasury bills, listed equities, private placements, loans and facilities to members, real estate projects and subsidiaries. The Fund has its largest investment in loans to its members.

The tremendous growth in assets is largely attributed to the commitment on the part of members (teachers) to invest towards their retirement and the Fund’s commitment to ensuring good returns on investment.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the Fund are
1. Retirement supplement – The monthly contributions are savings for the members. These are invested to generate returns. Upon retirement, a member receives a package made up of the total amount he has contributed over the years and the returns thereon.
2. Provision of lifestyle enhancing facilities – The Fund offers four categories of loan to its members with the view to enhancing their lifestyles and ensuring that they live comfortably. These are Personal Loan, Investment Capital Loan, Habitat Loan and Vehicle Loan.
3. Access to credit purchases from Credit Mall Limited – The Fund has established the Credit Mall Limited as a wholly owned subsidiary to sell household consumer items to members on credit.
4. To engage in Real Estate Ventures – The Fund seeks to address the accommodation needs of members by providing housing and accommodation facilities to interested members. It is also involved in the construction and rental of hostel facilities and office accommodation.

It is noteworthy that every initiative or activity carried out by The Fund is expected to fulfil its primary objective (i.e. objective 1) which involves providing contributors with a retirement supplement package. In line with this, the loans and facilities offered to contributors, the operations of Credit Mall Limited and the Real Estate Venture are expected to generate profits which are distributed to members as returns on their investments.