The Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) under its Academy of Leadership and Executive Training (ALET), has organised a corporate governance workshop for Council members of Simon Diedong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (SDD-UBIDS) in Accra.
The workshop was to equip members to know and have fair ideas on their responsibilities and duties for better development of the University.
The members were schooled on understanding the strategic roles of University Council and its committee, effective administration, leading and managing Universities, ensuring financial sustainability of the University, code of ethics among others.
In a presentation, Mr Justice Awuku Sao, Chief Executive Officer, Institute of Directors, said there was the need for all universities to be headed by an effective council which could both lead and direct the affairs of the universities, adding that “the university council has a collective responsibility to provide corporate governance for development.”
He said the Council members must ensure the implementation of the aims, strategies and monitor policies that would position the university at a higher level.
Mr Sao further said the council should be able to promote income-generating activities, control the finances and ensure the conservation and augmentation of resources of the university, especially matters affecting income or expenditure.
He advised the council not to deviate from their roles, but rather work hand- in -hand with management of the university.
“There is the need to educate council members, normally when people are given appointment letters, they are only told they have been appointed to serve on the board, they are not told what to do, so sometimes those without experience go in there and do not know what to do and they end up fighting management,” he said
Dr Charles Amoatey, Director, ALET said GIMPA believed that good governance was critical in any organisation that wanted to aspire to the top.
According to him most of the challenges organisations faced, had to do with lack of good governance practises within the organisations, “This is the maiden edition, we have plans of taking this programme to both the traditional and private universities and other organisation so that we can achieve the best result.”
Prof. Phillip Duku Osei, Vice-Chancellor, SDD-UBIDS Dombo, commended GIMPA for engaging Council members in good governance, “this university is very new therefore this programme would equip members effectively in area of their field of work.”
He said the vision of the university was to be an internationally acclaimed University that applied evidence from research and knowledge gained to solve the problems of business, national development, agencies, and non-state actors towards improved development outcomes.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG
