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    Revised UGEL hostel rises of 15% to 19% outpace 10.5% housing inflation and 5.5% CPI

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    Rent Control wants unassessed UGEL rises reversed by Tuesday 17 November. The revised 15% and 19% rates, and a 16.7% rise in the university's own halls, all exceed October's 5.5% inflation and 10.5% housing costs.

    University of Ghana students in UGEL hostels face revised rises of 15% for four-in-a-room and 19% for two-in-a-room in 2026/27, the university said on 8 November. Ghana's inflation was 5.5% in October, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) says.

    In real terms those revised rises are 9.0% and 12.8%. They also exceed GSS's measure of housing, water, electricity and gas costs, which rose 10.5% in the year to October.

    That measure includes utilities as well as rent. The periods are not identical: a fee set for the academic year against a price index for the 12 months to October.

    The Rent Control Department says rises it has not assessed cannot be charged. Under the Rent Act, 1963 (Act 220), an increase takes effect only after the department assesses it and the tenant gets a month's written notice, 3News reports.

    Its 2 November directive tells UGEL and all private hostel operators to restore previous rates and refund the excess by Tuesday 17 November, Citi Newsroom and MyJoyOnline reported.

    Citi Newsroom reported on 11 November that the department had petitioned the Attorney-General the previous day.

    What the fee schedules show

    UGEL first proposed 26% for some halls, a 19.4% real rise. It cut that after talks with student leaders, the university said. The university's own traditional halls went from GH¢3,000 to GH¢3,500 a year, up 16.7% (10.6% real), according to the same 8 November statement.

    That 16.7% also sits inside the 15% to 19% range. The 26% figure was the initial UGEL proposal, not the revised rates now described by the university.

    UGEL's published 2026/27 schedule lists a year in a shared room at Mensah Sarbah Hall C/D or Akuafo Hall Annex C at GH¢5,060 for local undergraduates. A self-contained room at Alex Adum Kwapong, Hilla Limann, Jean Nelson Aka or Elizabeth F. Sey Hall costs GH¢8,050 for local undergraduates, 2.3 times the traditional-hall rate. Graduate rates for the same self-contained rooms are higher, at GH¢16,100.

    Hostel rises v prices, 2026/27
    Fee rise GSS price index
    UGEL initial proposal26.0%
    UGEL two-in-a-room19.0%
    Traditional halls16.7%
    UGEL four-in-a-room15.0%
    GSS housing, water, electricity & gas (Oct 2026 y/y)10.5%
    GSS education services9.0%
    GSS headline CPI5.5%
    0102030

    Fee rises are for the 2026/27 academic year; GSS figures are year-on-year to October 2026. The periods are not identical: a fee set for the academic year against a price index for the 12 months to October. The 26% bar is the initial UGEL proposal, later revised. Source: University of Ghana, UGEL, Ghana Statistical Service.

    What the university and UGEL say

    In the 8 November statement, signed by the Director of Public Affairs, Dr Elizier Taiba Ameyaw-Buronyah, the university said the adjustments reflected higher utility, maintenance and service costs, and that talks with the Students' Representative Council, GRASAG-UG and the UGEL board were continuing.

    UGEL's chief executive, Yawo Agbesi, rejected claims that the company was exploiting students, Ahotor 92.3 FM reported. 3News reported that Dr Ameyaw-Buronyah had said UGEL was consulting its board on the final amount and would return excess payments.

    StatsGH did not obtain a fresh comment. 3News said neither the university nor UGEL had issued a public response to remarks by Acting Rent Commissioner Frederick Opoku on 10 November by that afternoon, and we found no later statement.

    On 10 November Mr Opoku told Adom FM that UGEL had "seven days to show their muscles or meet us in court", MyJoyOnline reported.

    What it means

    Rent is already a big driver of prices. GSS lists "payment for rent" first among the top 10 contributors to October's inflation, at 13.5% of the total.

    On Friday, Minister of State for Government Communications Felix Kwakye Ofosu said landlords had no basis to raise rents, citing cheaper building materials. Our check of his cement figures found the official cement index fell far less than the figures he cited.

    Limitations

    We could not get UGEL's 2025/26 schedule, so we give no prior cedi fee for any UGEL room. The 15%, 19% and 26% rises come from the university's statement, not from a year-on-year comparison of published schedules. The 2026/27 traditional-hall schedule confirms the new GH¢3,500 rate; the previous GH¢3,000 figure is from the 8 November statement.

    3News reported that UGEL was consulting its board on the final amount, so the PDF on the university's website may not show final rates. We do not know how many students have paid the higher rates or have been refunded, or whether a Rent Control assessment has been requested or completed.

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    Numbers behind the story +

    Figures used

    • UGEL revised rise, four-in-a-room: 15% (For 2026/27, from the university's 8 November statement; 9.0% in real terms against 5.5% CPI)
    • UGEL revised rise, two-in-a-room: 19% (For 2026/27, from the university's 8 November statement; 12.8% in real terms against 5.5% CPI)
    • GSS housing, water, electricity and gas inflation: 10.5% (Year-on-year to October 2026, Annex 8 10.455%, rounded as in the CPI presentation; headline CPI was 5.5%)

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