Founder of The Royal Bank awarded doctorate degree

The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has conferred an honorary doctorate degree on Alhaji Adamu Iddrisu, a business magnate who owns several businesses, including The Royal Bank.

This is the second highest honour to be received by the business magnate after he was named as one of the recipients of the prestigious Order of Volta awards in 2007.

The board and management of The Royal Bank, as well as relatives and sympathisers from abroad were present at the conferment.

Alhaji Adamu Iddrisu was honoured alongside six other persons for distinguishing themselves in their fields of endeavour.

The other recipients were Professor John Vivian Wood, Secretary-General of the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU); and Professor Yaw Aboagye Debrah, a Research Scientist.

The rest included Dr Nteranya Sanginga, of the IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria; Ing. Abass Mohammed Awolu, a technocrat; Mr Anthony Foli Danklu, former President of the KNUST Alumni Association; and Professor Benjamin Simpson, a Research Scientist.

This was at the Founders' Day and Special Congregation of the University held at the Great Hall, Kumasi.

It was chaired by the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who is also Chancellor of KNUST.

They were each decorated with a robe and received certificates of honour at the well-attended programme, which had in attendance people from the academia, traditional authorities and a cross-section of the public.

A citation read on behalf of Alhaji Iddrisu acknowledged the numerous businesses he had set up to create employment for the people and ensure economic growth, a milestone achieved by few personalities in the country.

The university also lauded him for allowing one of his companies, The Royal Bank, to sponsor the awards programme of the College of Arts and Social Sciences of the University for some time now.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu lauded the award winners for being committed to the cause of science and technology education, research and humanity development.

He said it was important that technocrats did more to impact positively on society's growth, urging the award winners not to work assiduously to realise their aims.

The Founders' Day was marked to commemorate the pioneering and critical role played by the late Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's First President, and Otumfuo Sir Osei Agyemang Prempeh in the establishment of the nation's premier science and technology institution.

In all, 2,072 students graduated, out of which 49 passed out with doctorate degrees.