University of Education to start fifth campus

The University of Education, Winneba (UEW) is to start a fifth campus in Techiman in the Brong Ahafo Region, to be called College of Distance Education and Extension Service.

According to the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Akwasi Asabere-Ameyaw,‘This is in pursuit of our mandate as spelt out in the UEW Act (Act 672), which enjoins us to establish an additional campus for the university when necessary’.

Currently, the university’s main campus is in Winneba, with the other three campuses in Kumasi, Mampong and Ajumako.

 Prof. Asabere-Ameyaw announced this at the 2014/2015 matriculation ceremony for over 8,000 distance education students from the northern sector, held at the Kumasi College of Technology Education campus.

Relevance of distance education

Prof. Asabere-Ameyaw said distance education had become an integral part of the country’s educational system, adding that currently, four of the nine public universities in Ghana in addition to private tertiary institutions were spearheading its advancement.

He also announced that the UEW was to provide crèches and day care centres to cater for children of students who are nursing mothers. 

The facilities would be part of the four permanent structures for study centres, which are being constructed in Techiman by the university in the Brong Ahafo; Onwe, in the Ashanti Region; Cape Coast in the Central Region and Kukurantumi in the Eastern Region.

The study centres for the distance programme are to help decongest the existing ones which are overpopulated, and also provide office accommodation for the co-ordinators and administrators of the centres.

Study centres

From an initial four study centres in 1996, the university has presently increased its centres to 28.

In 2014, for instance, the university opened three new study centres, one each in Tema, Ho and Sunyani while currently, the university has added one at Krobo Odumasi.

Plans are also on course to increase the number by the end of the year with centres at Ejisu, Ada, Damongo and Bimbila, while Kumasi and Tamale could have additional ones.

The university admits students to certificate, diploma, bachelor’s, master’s and PhD programmes.