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President Kufuor commissions
infrastructure facilities at KNUST
Kumasi, June 29, Ghanadot/GNA – President John Agyekum
Kufuor underscored today the need for tertiary institutions
to continue to open their doors for private enterprise to
participate in the provision of dormitory facilities for the
ever-growing student populations on college campuses.
The President, who was commissioning three infrastructure
facilities at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and
Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi on Friday, said the government
is sparing no effort to invest highly in providing hostel
facilities on the various campuses and will continue to
support the universities in developing appropriate policies
regarding student accommodation to boost higher learning in
the country.
The projects included a one-storey building for the Faculty
of Law and a post-graduate students’ hostel at a total cost
of 20 billion cedis funded by the President’s Special
Initiative on Tertiary Education as well as a 45
billion-cedi students’ hostel also funded by the Ghana
Superanuated Scheme (GUSS).
Professor Kwasi Kwafo Adarkwa, Vice-Chancellor of the
University, expressed grave concern about the lack of
academic facilities which combined with the nagging issue of
funding to block access to higher learning.
Giving figures to buttress his point, he said this year
alone the University received 16,593 applications out of
which 11,044 were qualified but only 6,000 were admitted
owing to constraints on facilities.
As a way out, the Vice-Chancellor suggested a national forum
of all stakeholders to engage in a non-partisan,
non-sectarian discourse to fashion out an appropriate and
far-reaching strategies for the funding of higher education.
Prof. Adarkwa expressed gratitude to President Kufuor for
being instrumental in the provision of on-campus academic
facilities and also to the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund)
which is funding 27 on-going projects.
Nana Dr Otuo Sereboe II, Omanhene of Juaben and Chairman of
the University Council who deputized for Otumfuo Osei tutu
II, Asantehene and Chancellor of the university, commended
the President for making funds available for the two
projects to boost post-graduate studies in law which
demonstrated his commitment to the rule of law and
socio-economic development engendered by post-graduate
research.
GNA
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