UCC launches 60th anniversary

The Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, has called on the management of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) to lead the way in the education reforms being carried out in the country.

He explained that, it should not be the preserve of the Ministry of Education to come up with ideas, saying, “You are at the forefront of education. I want you to lead the way on how we can strengthen junior secondary to truly make it secondary and not part of primary school.”

He indicated that the President had directed the Ministry to ensure the strengthening of the lower secondary (junior high school) to make sure that the nation would truly have a six-year secondary education.

Dr Adutwum was speaking at the launching of the 60th anniversary of the UCC at Cape Coast in the Central Region at the weekend.

The year-long anniversary celebration which is on the theme: “60 years of quality education: expanding the frontiers” will witness a number of activities for the celebrations, including health screening, blood donation, inaugural lectures and health talks.

The sector minister further urged the University to set a neighbourhood academic initiative where they would mentor, and guide the young ones in the public primary schools within the Cape Coast metropolis.

The Ministry, he said, would support the initiative with a bus to drop off volunteers in all Cape Coast schools and pick them up at the end of their day.

He congratulated and commended the University for the successes it had chalked over the past 60 years, and urged management to focus on breaking frontiers in terms of quality, relevance that would lead to the socio-economic transformation of the nation.

Dr Adutwum also charged the university to also contribute its quota in the building of a competitive nation through the training of high calibre personnel to meet the demands of the changing global economy.

“We are in a different era, we are in a different time and by this to be competitive, we need to change how we teach and how students learn.

“We cannot continue to do the same thing that we have done over the years and allow our nation to become competitive,” he added.

The Vice Chancellor of UCC, Prof. Johnson Nyarko Boampong, noted that the university since its establishment had achieved success in different fields despite challenges.

He explained that, the collective image of UCC on the global stage was high, and commended all those who had contributed to the growth of the university to its current state.

The Chairman of the Governing Council of UCC, Prof. Obeng Mireku, said the University within the constraints of its resources had over the years tried to be relevant to the needs of its communities.

He said UCC was adjudged the number one university in Ghana, first in West Africa, and among the top five universities in Africa.

Prof. Mireku added that the UCC was recognised as the first university globally for research influence, and first out of 138 new entrants in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings.

FROM DAVID O. YARBOI-TETTEH, CAPE COAST