Accra, Nov 27, GNA – Central University (CU) has held its 23rd congregation with a call on government to partner private universities to expand access to higher education in Ghana.
“There are 10 credible Chartered Private Universities with strong science and humanities capabilities. Government must pull back on the expansionist agenda in the public Higher Education space” in order to solve the issue of access and entry requirement, says Professor Bill Buenar Puplampu, Vice Chancellor of the CU.
He made the call on at the graduation ceremony of the University at the Christ Temple East, ICGC, La, Accra.
The Vice Chancellor indicated that if properly coordinated, private universities could complement government efforts and help the State save scare resources.
“Ghana does not need mega universities in the State sector with upwards of 50 thousand students each when there are available spaces in credible private universities.”
Professor Puplampu asked the government to identify credible private universities with strong faculties in sciences and applied social sciences and support them with STEM labs, fee vouchers systems, faculty development, partnerships, to match the public universities.
The academic also asked the government to focus more on the resourcing of senior high schools to produce good materials to feed tertiary institutions.
The Vice Chancellor indicated that, “With over 50 universities, technical universities and specialised institutions and over 100 private universities, (and over 236 HEIs), it was about time to find out what the nation is seeking to achieve.”
In the midst of this explosion of tertiary institutions, a strategic and intentional research-based policy framework that would tackle “the pertinent matter of creating a future ready workforce” for the Nation, was urgent.
Professor Puplampu emcouraged parents, guardians and funding agencies not to be weary of funding the higher education of their wards and the people of Ghana since its benefits “far outweighs the cost.”
The Vice Chancellor charged the graduating class to visualise career aspirations, which would enable them to measure the extent to which they could rise as they understood inherent structural politics, which were key to their career progression.
He also asked them to define their values and principles and stay on the path of morality.
The Central University presented 1,074 graduates, made up of 953 students from various undergraduate programmes and 121 from various graduate programmes.
Of this number, 44 received first class degrees with Mr. Graham Goshen Melomey, emerging as the overall best student with a CGPA of 3.93.
Central University was established 26 years ago and received its Presidential Charter eight years ago.
Starting with just a few hundred students and two Schools in 1998, the institution has grown to close to 7,000 students with three campuses and nine teaching Schools.
GNA