The giant leap on all fronts by the University of
Health and Allied Sciences in the Volta Region in just a matter of three years
took Hon. Sammy Okudzeto-Ablakwa by surprise when he visited the Ho, Sokode and
Hohoe campuses of the school on Monday during a familiarization tour.
Prof. Fred Binka, Vice-Chancellor of the school, who
took the Deputy Minister of Education in charge of Higher Education on the tour
revealed that the current student population of university stands at 633.
H said the first batch of students admitted into the
school for the 2011/2012 academic year was 45, while 159 students were admitted
for the 2012/2013 academic year. The third batch of students admitted for the
2013/2014 academic year was 329, bringing the total population to 633.
The Vice-Chancellor said the University currently
has 33 permanent lecturers and 30 part-time ones with two visiting lecturers
from the United Kingdom.
An impressed Sammy Okudzeto-Ablakwa also learnt that
the University was running a Masters Degree programme on Public Health.
According to Prof. Binka, the rapid progress made by
the university on all fronts has generated over 132 jobs for Ghanaians, from
lectures through libarians to Security staff.
The impressive facilities at the university include
a new auditorium with a sitting capacity of over 500. There is a medical
laboratory which is set to be commissioned in March while a new Anatomy
laboratory is ongoing and is due to be completed before the end of the year.
Lecture halls, staff bungalows and roads have been
either been completed or are at the verge of completion. Hon. Okudzeto-Ablakwa,
who spent nearly eight hours touring the institution was also at the Sokode
campus of the university. At the Hohoe Campus, he met Public Health students who
are HND holders and professionals in the health system who were doing their top
up programme to earn their degrees. They expressed gratitude to the government
for giving them the much sought opportunity to upgrade their education.
Speaking to the ‘Daily Post’ at the end of the visit,
the Deputy Minister said he was overwhelmed by the progress the university had
made and congratulated management for their untiring efforts. He announced that
the Ministry of Finance has released funds to cater for the salaries of workers
of the university.
The Deputy Minister is scheduled to pay a similar
visit to the University of Energy and Natural Resources in Sunyani tomorrow.
