KNUST inducts six provosts of its colleges

Kumasi, April 6, GNA - Professor Kwesi Andam, Vice-Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has stated that the university has an onerous responsibility to move Ghana to become a middle-income country.

He said KNUST, which was the main science and technology high institution, was the main vehicle that could transform the country into an emerging economy in the shortest possible time. Prof Andam has therefore charged the new provosts of the various colleges of the university to initiate pragmatic programmes that would help produce graduates suitable to lead Ghana to become a middle level income country.

He was speaking at the induction service and investiture of six pioneer provosts of the newly created colleges of the university. They were Prof Stephen Albert Osei, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Prof Seth Opuni Asiama, Architecture and Planning and Prof Daniel Obour, College of Arts and Social Sciences.

The rest were Prof Francis Warren Yaw Momade, College of Engineering, Prof Kwame Sarpong, College of Health Sciences and Prof Aboagye Menyeh, College of Science.

Prof Andam said the restructuring of the academic units was to enhance governance of the university by devolving more functions and authority from the central administration to the colleges. This, he said, would make the colleges become manageable units to enhance the performance of the core business of teaching, research and service at the university.

Prof Andam stressed the importance of the establishment of the College of Arts and Social Sciences and said a good efficient technical university was built on a foundation that recognised humanities, arts and social sciences as necessary and crucial to a normal functioning of a professional.

Nana Dr Otuo Serebour, Chairman of the University Council, who performed the investiture, said each provost was expected to ensure that his college was financially solvent in order to have a solid basis to perform its core functions and promote academic leadership in the college.

He urged them to serve as role models for both staff and students and said the fate of the university depended much on the achievements of the provosts. 06 April 05