KsTU @ 70: GTEC will not usurp powers of tertiary institutions councils — Prof. Jinapor
The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) will not usurp the powers of governing councils of tertiary institutions and recognises the councils’ legal responsibility of being the highest decision-making body of these institutions, the Director-General of GTEC, Professor Ahmed Abdulai Jinapor, has said.
According to him, the commission would continuously respect the enviable position of governing councils and would do everything to protect the same.
“GTEC will continue to work with the different stakeholders, including the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG), and all the different players within the tertiary educational enterprise, informed by dialogue to perfect that space,” he stressed.
Anniversary durbar
Prof. Jinapor made the remarks while addressing a durbar to climax the 70th anniversary celebration of the Kumasi Technical University (KsTU) last Saturday.
It was on the theme: “70 years of transformative technical education: Honouring our legacy, shaping the future”.
His statement came on the heels of recent calls for him and his deputy to resign by some colleagues in the tertiary education landscape.
They accused them of overreaching and usurping the powers of governing councils and Vice Chancellors, among others.
More instructive was when GTEC asked a publicly funded university to reverse the fee increment of some 100-200 per cent because approval had not been granted by the statutory mandated bodies of the state, while a union of the same institution was calling for the heads of the GTEC leadership.
“I want to use this opportunity to publicly commend and applaud VCG-TU for their very mature intervention during this period of seeming upheaval,” he said.
Reforms
He mentioned that GTEC had introduced bold reforms to streamline accreditation, strengthen quality assurance and enhance governance, saying, “The Accreditation Management Information System (AMIS), launched in 2024, has digitised and accelerated accreditation processes”.
Additionally, he stated that the GTEC Engagement Series and other initiatives had created platforms for dialogue, collaboration and shared problem-solving, as well as GTEC’s upcoming ranking of all tertiary educational institutions in Ghana.
Prof. Jinapor charged the KsTU to invest in emerging fields that represent the future of work, especially data analytics, mechatronics, green technologies, additive manufacturing, agro-tech innovation and digital design.
Curriculum design
The Managing Director of Attachy Company Limited, Kwame Atta Acheampong, in a keynote address, called for the strict participation of industry players directly in curriculum design to ensure that its processes and skills aligned with modern production systems and new technologies.
The Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, who represented the Vice-President, Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, assured the university of the government’s commitment towards improving KsTU’s infrastructure to enhance academic work.
He commended the institution for its contributions towards the growth and development of the nation, saying, “We appreciate your efforts for the past 70 years and urge you to do more to train the needed human capital for national development”.
The Vice-Chancellor, KsTU, Prof. Gabriel Dwomoh, said the celebration highlighted the institution’s strides in STEM education, contributions to technical and vocational education and training and the countless innovations birthed within laboratories that were solving real-world problems.
The Bantamahene, Baffour Owusu Amankwatia VI, who represented the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, charged the faculty and students to strive to come up with solutions to address the myriad of socio-economic challenges facing the nation.
