By Philip Tengzu
Wa, (UW/R), Oct. 16, GNA – The SDD University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (SDD-UBIDS) has opened its fourth International Research and Development Conference with a commitment to living its mandate of contributing towards the Sustainable Development of the community it serves.
The conference, on the theme: “Nine Years Down the Road to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: What is on Display from African Businesses and other Stakeholders”, attracted over 100 registered participants from universities across Ghana and beyond including the University of Nigeria Nsukka.
The SDD-UBIDS was established by Act 1001, 2019 and mandated to be an internationally acclaimed applied research and practical-oriented educational institution dedicated to the development of business and integrated development studies and related matters.
Speaking at the opening of the Conference, Professor Issaka Kanton Osumanu, the Pro-Vice Chancellor of the SDD-UBIDS, reiterated the commitment of the university to the development of Ghana and Africa through development-oriented research.
“As a development-focused university and in line with our vision to be an internationally acclaimed centre of excellence in higher education, we are delighted to be part of this noble cause that will impact the academic and development community in Ghana and Africa”, he explained.
Prof. Kanton said the SDD-UBIDS desired to produce scholars with sustainable thinking through modelling young career academics and stressed the need for impactful research to help address critical development challenges of the country.
He, therefore, said graduate students at the university had become the “most important participants” of the conference since its inception four years ago.
Professor Frederick Dayuor, the Director of Research at the SDD-UBIDS, emphasised the importance of the SDGs for sustainable development since they served as a universal framework for addressing the world’s most pressing social, environmental and economic challenges.
He said that informed their decision to create a platform through the conference to examine the extent of addressing global challenges after nine years of implementation and the roles of various stakeholders in that regard.
He said the conference had witnessed an appreciable increase in patronage from about 40 registered participants in the first edition in 2021 to 104 registered participants in 2024.
“The abstracts submitted to this year’s conference for presentation exhibit good quality, having successfully undergone a double-blind review process”, Prof. Kanton said.
He added that 81 abstracts were accepted for presentation at the conference out of a total of 180 abstracts received.
Prof. Dayuor said they had developed a comprehensive research and innovation policy to govern the conduct of research and research-related activities in this university as part of measures to develop an active research landscape and promote the visibility of the university.
“Other policies being considered and guidelines that are being initiated by the directorate include the consultancy services policy, a data protection policy, an intellectual property policy, and guidelines on credible publication outlets and submission of grants and consultancy proposals”, he added.
GNA