Story by Richard Kofi Boahen
The 4th Applied Research Conference of Technical Universities of Ghana (ARCTUG 2026) has ended at the Takoradi Technical University with a call on government to establish a dedicated Technical Universities Transformation Support Fund to address critical infrastructure and funding gaps confronting Technical Universities across the country.
The Chairman of the Vice-Chancellors of Technical Universities of Ghana (VCTU-G), Ing. Prof. Kwadwo Adinkrah-Appiah, who made the call explained that technical universities remain central to Ghana’s industrial transformation agenda and the country’s efforts to tackle youth unemployment and skills deficits.
The conference, themed “Advancing TVET for Innovation, Technology Transfer, and Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Development,” had a significant international dimension, with participation from countries across Africa, Europe, North America, and Asia, including Zimbabwe, Zambia, Nigeria, Senegal, Cameroon, the United States, Canada, France, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Malaysia.
Approximately 300 peer-reviewed papers were presented during the conference, covering areas such as Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation, Fintech, Agriculture, Maritime Studies, Entrepreneurship, Sustainability, Tourism, and Creative Arts.
Dedicated fund
“We have gathered here at a critical moment in Ghana’s development journey,” he stated. “While Ghana continues to pursue economic growth and industrial transformation, significant challenges still confront our nation, including youth unemployment, infrastructure deficits, low industrial productivity, and the increasing demand for practical, employable, and industry-relevant skills.”
Prof. Adinkrah-Appiah, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of Sunyani Technical University, emphasized that Technical Universities are uniquely positioned to drive applied research, innovation, and competency-based training under the mandate of the Technical Universities Act, 2016 (Act 922).
He explained that the conference serves as a major platform for academia, industry, and government to collaborate on practical solutions to national development challenges.
“ARCTUG 2026 continues to serve as the leading platform for applied research within Ghana’s Technical University sector,” he noted. “The conference directly supports national priorities in TVET, industrialization, entrepreneurship, digital transformation, research commercialization, and sustainable development.”
Prof. Adinkrah-Appiah further indicated that the objectives of the conference strongly align with the government’s 24-Hour Economy Agenda, which seeks to increase productivity, create jobs, and stimulate enterprise development.
“Technical Universities are uniquely positioned to support this agenda through practical skills training, applied research, entrepreneurship development, and technology transfer,” he added.
Visionary intervention
“This year marks ten years since your administration converted Ghana’s Polytechnics into Technical Universities,” he said. “That bold and visionary intervention transformed the landscape of technical and vocational education in Ghana.”
However, he noted that many institutions transitioned into university status without the corresponding investments required to fully support the transformation process.
He identified key challenges including inadequate laboratories and workshops, limited digital infrastructure, insufficient research funding, weak commercialization systems, and inadequate student accommodation facilities.
