Veep calls on Universities to undergo critical re-orientation

Fiapre (B/A), Nov. 25, GNA - The Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama at the weekend tasked the country's tertiary institutions to undergo a critical re-orientation to shift their focus from their core mandate and concentrate more on human capacity development. He called on the Universities to play a leading role in the development of the human resources of Ghana to facilitate an effective adjustment of the citizenry in the social, industrial and global market of the 21st century.

Alhaji Mahama made the call during the maiden congregation of the Catholic University College of Ghana, at Fiapre in the Brong Ahafo Region, where 44 graduates dressed in academic gowns, received degrees in Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science amidst cheers from friends and relatives.

He commended the University authorities for incorporating Information Communication and Technology into the curriculum, which combines practical education with rigorous academic study and research. "I highly commend the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference for the courage, foresight, tenacity of purpose and commitment it has shown in the establishment of the University," he said.

Alhaji Mahama said the active involvement of the Churches in the establishment of Universities was a happy and welcome development as it marked a continuation in the history of the role of the Churches in the educational development of the country.

Shifting his attention to the graduates, he asked them to be shining examples and good ambassadors of the school through their conduct and performance in the wider society.

Peter Cardinal Appiah Turkson, Archbishop of Cape Coast and Chancellor of the University, said the academic institution, which started in March 2003, registered the pioneer students to study Economics and Business Administration, Information and Communication Sciences and Technology and Religious Studies and Education. "They have spent four years of serious and assiduous study, research, writing and numeration in partial and total fulfillment of the requirements pertaining to Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees."

Most Reverend Joseph Osei-Bonsu, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University said products of the school were trained to understand the social and cultural problems of Ghana, lead a life that expresses Christian ethical and moral values and with a commitment to serve God and country and meet the challenges of an increasingly complex national and global society.

Professor Ebow Mensah, Acting President of the University College, commended the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) for providing 1.5 billion cedis for the construction of a library facility. "Trustees of the GETFund have just approved an amount of 400 million cedis for the purchase of computers and printers for the University," he said.

Prof. Mensah suggested the need for the managers of the fund to spend between 40 and 50 per cent of the money spent on the support and maintenance of the public Universities on private Universities as way of acknowledging the contribution of parents of students in the private tertiary schools.

Prof. Ben Ahunu, from the University of Ghana, Legon, observed in a goodwill message that the current global economy was dominated by knowledge based industries in which Universities have a major role to play in producing human resource and in undertaking the necessary research for development.