The Chairman of the Governing Council of the Methodist University Ghana(MUG), Most Reverend Dr Paul Boafo, has appealed to the government to consider state funding for private universities.
This, he explained, would help boost the capacity of private universities in the area of research and training which would be of enormous benefit to the country.
Most Rev. Dr Boafo was speaking at the 20th congregation of the university held in Accra over the weekend.
Themed “Promoting quality tertiary education in post COVID-19 era: The role of private universities,” the congregation witnessed the conferment of various undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and diplomas to a total of 733 students.
Out of the total number, 525 were undergraduate students while 208 were postgraduate students.
Also, 12 special awards were presented to deserving graduating students for excellent performance of which five were undergraduate students and seven being postgraduate students.
Mr Benjamin Donkor was adjudged the overall best under graduate student and received a cash prize and a plaque.
“We would like to take this opportunity to ask government to take a look at state funding (partially) of private universities especially in capacity building,” Most Rev. Dr Boafo said.
Most Rev. Dr Boafo expressed his profound gratitude to the government for granting the MUG a Presidential Charter this year to enable it become autonomous after years of affiliation to the University of Ghana (UG), Legon.
He further affirmed the support of the MUG from the Methodist Church saying “the university management will continue to receive from us the support they require to carry out the MUG’s mandate.”
The chairman also urged the graduates to make good use of the knowledge, skills, attitudes and training acquired and be worthy ambassadors of the university.
The guest speaker and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Abetifi, MrByranAcheampong, urged the MUG and other private universities to adapt and transition from traditional to a blend of traditional and distance learning formats through virtual classrooms.
Educational instructors in the current era, Mr Acheampong opined ought to exhibit traits of leadership, teamwork, creativity and Information Technology IT in order to enhance effective teaching and learning.
He called on government to provide private schools the needed assistance to enable them contribute in the promotion of quality education.
The Acting Vice Chancellor of the University, Very Rev Professor John David Kwamena Ekem noted that MUG had received approval from the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) and the Nursing and Midwifery Council to extend its Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Nursing programme to its Dansoman and Tema campuses.
This, he said, followed an appeal made to the two regulatory bodies after it granted the University accreditation to commence the programme on its Wenchi campus last year.
The programme is expected to take off on all three campuses from January next year.
Very Rev. Prof.Ekem said the university was also awaiting final approval from GTEC to offer other programmes such as Master of Art (MA) in Public Policy and Governance, Resource Management and Organisational Development and Corporate Leadership and Governance.
Others are Doctor of Counselling Psychology, Master of Science (MSc) in Procurement and Supply Chain Management and Accounting and Finance.
However, he indicated that programmes such as Bachelor of Science in Public Health Nursing, Entrepreneurship and Wealth Creation had been submitted to GTEC for approval.
The university, Very Rev. Prof. Ekem said entered into collaboration with universities from other countries as a way of imparting knowledge and skills in disciplines relevant to the general global development and would look to build on it in the next academic year.
He noted that the decline in student enrollment since 2013 was a challenge for the university but was optimistic that would change as it strives to develop strategies and action plans to address the issue.
The congregation was attended by vice chancellors of various public and private universities who offered goodwill messages.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY& CECILIA LAGBA
