Universities must design market-driven courses - JAK

President John Agyekum Kufuor on Saturday called on the country's universities to design market-driven professional courses for the training of graduates instead of the mass production of scholars in disciplines, which tend to worsen graduate unemployment.

President Kufuor stressed that market-driven professional courses have now become very vital since such courses have the potential of providing graduates with the requisite skills that will enable them fill the existing job markets and even create their own jobs after graduation.

The call was contained in an address read on his behalf by Dr Kwame Addo Kufuor, Minister of Defence and acting Minister of Interior at the 36th congregation of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi.

In all, 2,685 graduates received degrees and diplomas in various disciplines with 77 of them being honoured with first class honours.

President Kufuor was, however, happy that KNUST had already taken the initiative at introducing market-oriented programmes in computer engineering and herbal medicine.

He again called on universities to utilise the immense human resources available to them to engage in consultancy services and other revenue-generating activities to help them in their own development and to also augment the incomes of the staff.

President Kufuor urged graduates in specialised disciplines to come together to form co-operative ventures, companies and consortiums to help generate employment for themselves and others rather than "always waiting for the government or some other institutions or individual to provide work for them".

In his address, Professor Kwesi Andam, Vice Chancellor of the KNUST, announced that the university starting from 2003/2004 academic year, would reserve a quota for students from the less endowed secondary schools in the rural areas.

Professor Andam explained that the decision to reserve such a quota stems from the fact that educational standards in rural secondary schools "are so bad that only an insignificant number of rural students reach our universities".

The Vice-Chancellor suggested that in order to arrest further decline and total collapse of the public universities in Ghana, "the principle of cost sharing must be adhered to".

"The process of cost sharing in university education must advance for the sake of salvaging what remains of our universities. The days of socialism ended in Ghana long ago and we are now in the 'Golden Age of Business', therefore, socialistic tendencies must be dismantled", Professor Andam stressed.

The Vice-Chancellor announced a number of reforms being pursued by the KNUST including the establishment of a faculty of law and elective courses in certain aspects of sporting events like swimming, badminton and tennis.

Professor F.A. Kufuor, Chairman of the KNUST Council, stated that the council had already given approval for the establishment of a Faculty of Law that will offer courses leading to the Bachelor of Law degree by October, this year, as well as a degree course in nursing to be offered by the College of Health Sciences also in October.

While commending the government for the immense support, he stressed the need for the nation to channel more funds to strengthen the universities to enable them to train the country's human resources.