According to the three institutions, the barring of pregnant students from taking examinations is illegal and unconstitutional.

The decision was taken at a meeting of directors of the MoH, NMC and COHETI in Accra on Tuesday.

A statement signed by Mr. Robert Cudjoe, Head of MOH Public Relations, after the meeting, said the MOH and its stakeholders hold the view that there are no provisions in the 1992 constitution that bars pregnant students from writing College examination as well as the licensing examination which are conducted by the Nursing and Midwifery Training Institutions and the Nursing and Midwifery Council respectively.

It said at the meeting held at the Council’s Head Office in Accra, “the stakeholders indicated their commitment to respect and abide by the provisions in Article 12, 17 and 23 of the 1992 constitution and other International Conventions that prohibit any forms of discrimination and Human Rights violation in the training, education and practice of nursing and midwifery in Ghana.”

The decision taken at the meeting follows the recent issue of a pregnant student at the Gushegu Midwifery Training School, in the Northern Region who was initially, prevented from writing her examinations.

“The MOH, NMC and COHETI would like to assure the general public that, the rights of students in the Nursing and Midwifery Training Schools would be respected,” it said.

In addition, the statement noted that the meeting decided that a committee would be formed soon to review the Students’ Handbook to ensure that all rules, regulations and any other clause are in conformity with the 1992 constitution.

Earlier in May, a married pregnant woman in the Gushegu Midwifery School was sacked from an examination hall midway through her papers. The principal of the School asked her to go home and return next year to complete her studies because of her four-month-old pregnancy.