The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has urged private universities and colleges to move towards specialisation.
This, according to the Deputy Director General of GTEC, Dr Ahmed Jinapor, would help equip students with the requisite skills needed for the job market.
He disclosed this at the graduation ceremony of the Business Management and Financial Institute (BMFI) in Accra yesterday.
The colorful ceremony saw a total of 184 students graduate on programmes duly certified by the University of Cape Coast (UCC) in the field of Education, Water and Sanitation and Business Administration.
The Deputy Director said that it was important for universities to provide students with the needed skills, innovative and entrepreneurial training for them to help contribute to the socio-economic development of the country.
“Universities are known for their specialties. The Jack of all trade, master of none must be perched”, he added.
He further indicated that institutions who were able to show demonstrable evidence of progression under the Education Bodies Regulatory Law (Act 1023) which required all private universities and colleges to take steps to charter for four years would be given additional two years to charter.
Dr Jinapor highlighted the challenges faced by private universities such as competition with well established public universities, staying accredited through affiliations which comes with its own cost among others, and therefore commended BMFI for withstanding these challenges to pursue academic excellence.
He, however, pledged his outfits support for private universities in the country to achieve their aims and objectives of delivering high standard education and training programmes.
The Deputy Minister of Education Mrs Gifty Twum Ampofo, on her part reiterated the government’s support for the education sector which was carried out through its policies such as the Free Senior High.
Fast forward, Mrs Ampofo, noted that the government was well aware of the tremendous role played by the private universities and colleges in augmenting public universities in the delivery of high standard education and training through its flexible educational calendar and programmes.
The Deputy Minister indicated that the government’s GovTechEnablers Index (GTEI) currently stood at 18.84 per cent and that the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was determined to improve it to 40 per cent by 2030.
She also urged private universities to make digitisation a part of their learning systems as the world was now being controlled by technology.
The Chair of the Governing Council of BMFI, Professor Asonaba Kofi Addison, congratulated them for the efforts they put in during their stay at the university to achieve their aims and objectives.
He further charged them to exhibit a high level of professionalism as they were about to get into the world of work in order not for people to doubt and question their capabilities.
At the graduation Mr Paul Da Costa Bortey, an Engineer at the Ghana Water Company was adjudged the overall best student.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
