The University of Cape Coast (UCC), would by next academic year, accommodate about 600 non-residential students at its new hostel facilities which are nearing completion.
This would enable the university to raise the number of residential students from 40 to 60 per cent, the Director of Development of the University, Mr George Tetteh told the Minister of Education, Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, who was in the university to commission a multi-purpose two billion-cedis building complex to house the Institute of Education of the UCC on Wednesday.
They included the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETfund) sponsored block of flats, which would house 160 students, four cluster of blocks being sponsored by SSNIT to accommodate 250 students and a VALCO sponsored block for 200 post-graduate students.
Mr Tetteh said the university had opened its doors to estate developers to invest in hostel facilities on campus to help accommodate the remaining 40 per cent of students, who are living in the "Diaspora".
Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi was also shown round a new auditorium being sponsored by the GETfund, which has the capacity of accommodating 1,500 people to replace the old one, which only takes 600.
At the Science block, parts of walkways had been turned into offices and laboratories due to lack of space, the Minister was informed. Professor Ameyaw- Akumfi expressed satisfaction about the stages of the projects, which he said on completion would give the university a facelift.
Commissioning the building, Prof. Ameyaw-Akumfi called on all to support the " In- In-Out" policy of the Ministry, under which teacher trainees stay in the classroom for two years and move to the field for a year.
He said it was a laudable policy that would enable the trainees to gain more experience on the field. "The Ministry will give teacher education the necessary support in the country" adding that the Institute should also work hard to propel it into a field of "excellence".
