Bolgatanga Polytechnic ready for conversion into technical university

The acting Rector of the Bolgatanga Polytechnic, Professor Samuel E. Alnaa, has indicated the preparedness of the polytechnic to be converted into a technical university.

He indicated that the polytechnic had addressed all the deficiencies that made it miss out in the first assessment in July 2015, saying that it was ready for the team of assessors to reassess the institution for conversion into a technical university.

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The rector said this during the sixth graduation of the polytechnic at Sumbrungu, a suburb of Bolgatanga, in the Upper East Region.

A total of 927 graduands, made up of the 2016 and 2017 year groups, were awarded Higher National Diplomas (HNDs) and degrees in Bachelor of Technology, with 66 students obtaining first class in the HND programmes and three in the degree programme.

Laboratory and engineering equipment

Prof. Alnaa said in 2016, the polytechnic devoted GH¢4 million of its GETFund allocation to the acquisition of laboratory equipment which had been installed and was functioning.

"This move is in pursuance of quality hands-on education in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) which is the focus of technical education in Ghana. This also puts us in a very good position to be converted into a technical university," he said.

He said the polytechnic had also taken delivery of multi-media and engineering equipment from the Amatrol Project worth US$1 million meant to retool polytechnics and technical universities.

Infrastructure

Prof. Alnaa noted that the smooth running of every academic institution was contingent on good infrastructure, saying to that end, a three-storey hostel facility, which was started in 2011, was now near completion and would soon be handed over to the polytechnic.

He said that would accommodate about 212 students, thereby relieving many students from the inconvenience they went through staying outside the campus.

"Also, a one-storey staff bungalow is about 70 per cent complete. We appreciate the government's efforts in this direction. But, like the proverbial Oliver Twist, we are asking for more. We need a lecture theatre complex that will also house offices for lecturers and an examination centre,” he said.

New programmes

The rector said the polytechnic was planning to introduce 15 new programmes in the 2018/2019 academic year and that the programmes had been submitted to the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE).

They include Bachelor of Technology in Ecological Agriculture, Bachelor of Technology in Agricultural Engineering and Bachelor of Technology in Hotel, Catering and Institutional Management.

The rest are Bachelor of Technology in Civil Engineering, Bachelor of Technology in Building Technology, HND Banking and Finance, HND Estate Management, HND Automobile Engineering, HND Electrical Engineering, HND Solar Energy Engineering, HND Glass Technology, HND Medical Laboratory Technology, HND Pharmacy Technician, HND Mechanical Engineering and HND Irrigation Technology.

Government commitment

The Minister of State in charge of Tertiary Education, Prof. Kwesi Yankah, said the government was keen on upgrading the Bolgatanga and the Wa polytechnics into technical universities to enable them to derive full and maximum benefits from technical tertiary education.

Electricity bills

The Chairman of the Governing Council of the Bolgatanga Polytechnic, Prof. Francis Atindaana Abantanga, appealed to the government to settle the indebtedness of polytechnics and technical universities to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

He said the Volta River Authority (VRA) had disconnected the Bolgatanga Polytechnic on a number of occasions and had also threatened to install prepaid meters on the two campuses, saying it took the intervention of the Upper East Regional Minister to get the institution connected each time it was disconnected.