Prove your ‘Dr’ title or stop using it, GTEC tells Spio-Garbrah
Ghana's higher education regulator has given Presidential Envoy for Reparations Ekwow Spio-Garbrah a deadline to provide evidence that he is entitled to use the academic title "Dr", warning that he must stop using it if he cannot substantiate the claim.
Ghana's higher education regulator has directed the country's Presidential Envoy for Reparations, Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, to provide evidence that he is entitled to use the academic title "Dr", or immediately stop using it if he cannot.
The directive from the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) forms part of the regulator's ongoing campaign to curb the use of unearned or improperly used academic titles by public figures.
In a letter dated July 27 2026, GTEC asked Mr Spio-Garbrah—who publicly styles himself as Ambassador Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah—to provide details supporting his use of the title.
The commission requested the name of the institution that awarded the doctorate, whether the degree was earned or honorary, the date it was conferred and the process through which it was awarded.
The letter, signed by GTEC Deputy Director-General Prof Augustine Ocloo and copied to the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, warned that failure to provide the required documentation would require him to stop using the title.
"Should you be unable to provide the required documentation, you will be expected without delay to cease the use of the Dr title," the letter said.
GTEC also instructed Mr Spio-Garbrah to provide verifiable evidence that the title had been removed from all official and public platforms, including institutional profiles, websites, official documents and letterheads, if he is unable to justify its use.
The commission requested his response by 31 July 2026, saying it expected his full cooperation.
The move is the latest in GTEC's nationwide effort to enforce standards on the use of academic titles.
The regulator launched the campaign in 2024, initially engaging individuals privately before issuing formal notices. It later escalated its enforcement by publicly naming individuals who failed to comply.
GTEC says the initiative is intended to protect the integrity of academic qualifications and discourage the use of honorary or unearned titles to gain public influence or professional advantage.