The Sunyani Traditional Council has reiterated its resolve to recover all stolen lands belonging to the Sunyani Technical University (STU).
Speaking at the second session of the 17th Congregation of STU, the Omanhene of Sunyani, Ɔdɛɛfoɔ Ɔgyeamansan Boahen Korkor II, reassured the University that he would ensure that all encroachers are ejected from the land and made to face the full rigors of the law.
This, he added, will enable the institution to expand its infrastructure base, especially in its quest to construct additional hostels and lecture halls to accommodate the ever-growing number of students.
Ɔdɛɛfoɔ Ɔgyeamansan Boahen Korkor II advised the graduands to shun illicit drugs but rather strive for excellence, bearing in mind that with the knowledge and skills they have acquired; they should focus on making a meaningful contribution to the country.
For his part, the Vice-Chancellor, Ing. Prof Kwadwo Adinkrah-Appiah, said the current Faculty strength of 255, with almost 10,000 students, does not help the departments meet the student-lecturer ratios for the various programmes run by the University, as prescribed by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) guidelines.
This, he explained, has compelled Management to engage the services of Part-Time Lecturers while efforts are also being made to further build the capacity of some lecturers.
Prof. Adinkrah-Appiah appealed to government to come to the aid of the university by granting financial clearance to recruit more staff to better the student-lecturer ratios, as the IGF alone cannot help recruiting the required number of Staff”, he said.
The Vice Chancellor also called on the government to grant approval to universities in Ghana, through GTEC, to replace all staff who end their employments with these institutions as soon as they leave to avoid the burden of having to recruit part-time staff whilst waiting for years un-end to obtain governmental approval for replacement.
He also said the University in collaboration with the Edinburgh College; UK recently completed an entrepreneurship training of its staff through the British Council.
According to the Vice Chancellor, the training has indeed sharpened the skills of STU staff to further train all students in entrepreneurial principles and how to commence start-up businesses before they complete their programmes at the University.
“The University is, therefore, more poised to continue training our students to attain technical and entrepreneurial skills and values before they leave campus for the job market, and that is why our graduates are highly employable and many of them have become job creators”, he added.
The Bono Regional Minister, Joseph Addae Akwaboah reaffirmed the government’s commitment to tertiary education, citing the payment of fees for first-year students in the country’s public universities and colleges as a testament to this pledge.
Mr. Ertana Abednego Kwabena Direbo of the Department of Business and Management emerged as the valedictorian with other outstanding students recognized and awarded for their exceptional academic achievements.
In all, 1,012 graduands were awarded Master of Technology (MTech), Higher National Diploma (HND) and Diploma Certificates in Engineering, TVET, Applied Science and Technology, Built Environment and Applied Arts, as well as Business and Management Studies disciplines.
Out of the graduating class, 609, representing 60.2%, are males, whilst 403, representing 39.8% are females. Also, 11, representing 1.10% belong to the Master’s (MTech) Cohort, whilst 1,001 constitute HND and Diploma Cohort.
