Rhode Island University strengthens ties with Ghana

A delegation of Deans from the University of Rhode Island (URI) - US, have ended a five–day visit to Ghana, aimed at strengthening ties and exploring academic partnerships with Ghanaian institutions.

The institutions visited were the University of Cape Coast (UCC), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, the University of Ghana and Ghana Institute for Management and Public Administration.

They contributed to URI programmes funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and collaborative projects with corresponding Ghanaian institutions.

A statement signed by Patricia Aba Mensah, Communications Specialist for USAID/Ghana Sustainable Fisheries Management Project (SFMP) and copied to the Ghana News Agency on Wednesday said.

According to the statement, the projects included, SFMP and the USAID/West Africa Analytical Support Services and Evaluations for Sustainable Systems in Agriculture, Environment, and Trade.

It said the visit was a follow-up to a previous inaugural trip of the President of URI to Ghana in April, which was intended to establish and strengthen cooperative relations between the URI Coastal Resources Centre and UCC Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences in the implementation of each other’s USAID-funded projects.

The statement said the university partnerships would enhance the position of Ghanaian academic institutions and URI to develop graduates with global perspectives that are better able to compete within the global context and deal with the myriad of issues that confront global economies and societies.

It said there is the need for countries to deal with the consequences of global issues such as climate change, food security, and international disputes, among others.

“Consequently, there is rising demand in higher education to equip graduates with the capabilities to understand and deal with these evolving issues. Universities are best placed to provide requisite higher education for dealing with these global issues,” the statement said.