Focus on strengthening university's IGF - Asantehene

By Stephen Asante, GNA
Kumasi, June 21, GNA - Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene and Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), has inaugurated the newly-constituted University Council with a call to it to focus on strengthening internally-generated funds (IGF) of the institution.

This, he indicated, had become necessary given the continued decline of government's subvention, something which was hampering research activities, implementation of capital projects and effective academic work.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu said its members should bring their varied skills and expertise to bear on the finances of the university to enable it to efficiently carry out its mandate.

The Council, chaired by Mr. Kwame Saarah Mensah, would serve a two-year term and this could be renewed.

The Asantehene underlined that science and technology education was a catalyst to the socio-economic progress of every nation and that was why funding of this sector of education, must be made a top priority.

He urged the Council to work closely with the management to achieve set goals.

Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, Minister of Education, said the government was determined to provide the needed resources to improve the quality of the nation's tertiary education.

She made reference to the recent approval of GH¢37 million as books and research allowances to university and polytechnic lecturers and said this was a proof of that.

Prof William Otoo Ellis, the out-going Vice-Chancellor, said the management would cooperate with the Council to enable it to live up to expectation.

GNA