"Mo Ne Yo" tertiary award launched

Accra, May 30, GNA - Tertiary education is critical to human development and the education authorities would ensure that it is given top priority, the Minister of Education, Science and Sports, Papa Owusu-Ankomah, said on Wednesday.

"(Therefore) any nation that fails to recognize this crucial role of tertiary education does so at the peril of its development agenda," he said in a speech read on his behalf by Mr Kwamena Acquah, Director of Administration and Finance of the Ministry at the launch of the first "Mo Ne Yo" Tertiary Awards in Accra. He noted that the ministry was committed to ensuring that tertiary education took centre stage in the quest for the right manpower needed to achieve a collective vision of becoming a middle-income nation by 2015.

The "Mo Ne Yo" Tertiary Awards, organized by P. One Communications partnered by Ghana@50 Secretariat and the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS), seeks to honour individuals and groups that excel in various aspects of tertiary education and contribute to the promotion of excellence in tertiary institutions The ministry, he said, had allocated 15 billion cedis for research, promotion and development of science and technology. Papa Owusu-Ankomah said programs had also been set up for upgrading the skills of science and mathematics teachers to sustain the teaching and learning of the application of science and technology, adding that government would continue to pursue the reversal of the 65:35 enrolment ratio of humanities and science. He said his outfit, through the University of Cape Coast and other tertiary institutions, was establishing distance-learning centres across the country for workers and students in remote parts to access tertiary education without coming into residence. The chairman for the occasion, Mr Paul Gyendu, noted that tertiary education played an important role in the country's development. As such excellence achievers in the sector should be recognised by giving them awards to serve as role models for the up and coming ones. He said the award would help promote competition among lectures, institutions and individuals to do their best in the learning process and called on the organizers to come out with credible and transparent criteria for choosing winners so that it would be recognized as free and fair.

Mr Frederick Owusu, Executive Director of P. One Communication, said providing quality tertiary education required readiness on the part of major stakeholders like government and industries to spend on the provision of modern infrastructure, fund for research and a suitable number of teachers required for vigorous student-teacher interaction necessary for any kind of education.

He said tertiary education was not special merely because it was the highest form of formal education, but because of its fundamental peculiarities like research-oriented academic work, training of future leaders through the concept of student leadership and optimal combination of academic work and sports.

The "Mo Ne Yo Awards is categorized into three groups. The first is award for Social Research of the Year, Science Research of the Year, Most Research-Oriented Institution, Popular Student Event of the Year and the Most Socially Responsible Institution. The Second is for Sport Personality of the Year (Male and Female), Constructive Student Activism and Special Achievements of the Year. The third is for the Most Supportive Corporate Body, Most Supportive Non-profit Organisation and Honorary Awards.