Gov’t must play a key role between academia and industry — Former Amb to the UK

Former Ambassador to the UK, Mr Isaac Osei, says government plays a key role in modernization and transformational agenda of bridging the gap between academia and industry.

He said government requires strong institutions to hasten the realization of this agenda.

He was as the guest speaker at the 2nd graduation and 20th commissioning ceremony of Ministers of the Gospel of the Heritage Bible Institute, at the Heritage Christian College on the theme: “Academia and Industry Collaborations: Closing the Skills Gap of Graduates.”

Speaking on the theme, he mentioned the “Concept of the Tripod”, indicating that bridging the gap requires government to act as the third leg in the formation of the Tripod.

“The concept of the tripod is suggestive of the fact that all three legs are necessary to provide the support for whatever you need to carry.”

"…when one leg is weak, the other two are also weak, so what we need is for government, academia and industry to work together to narrow and eventually eliminate the gap that makes it difficult for graduates to finds jobs in the industry.”

According to him, government formulates and regulate policies of both academia and industry, “so the government is a strong pillar of the tripod”.

In ensure government work effectively towards the agenda, he added that regulatory institutions of academia and industry must be strong for its attainment.

He urged the graduates to live the values they had learnt from HCC which are very much needed in the development of the country.

He encouraged them to be entrepreneurial, apply the practical skills they had acquired to solve problems and make a significant impact wherever they found themselves.

The President of the University, Dr. Samuel Twumasi-Ankrah spoke about ongoing plans to increase degree offerings of the university in 2021.

He mentioned some of the new programmmes being processed for accreditation such as Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Bachelor and Diploma in Guidance & Counselling, Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies, Bachelor of Science in Multimedia Technology, Bachelor of Theology and Community Development, Bachelor of Administration in Accounting and Computing, and Supply Chain and Logistics Management.

He said the university also intends to introduce Master’s in Accounting and Finance, Banking and Finance and Human Resource Management.

The President charged the graduates to keep their faith in God, pursue their vision relentlessly and never give excuses.

“Go into the world and live what Brian Tracy calls 'A No-excuse Life.' Don’t fan the flames of failure in your life. Don’t look for others and things and circumstances to blame for not reaching your highest potential in life. You all can make it if you live your life by daily inching closer to your goals.”

At the ceremony, forty-two (42) graduates were awarded Bachelor’s degrees in Business Administration with options in Accounting, Banking and Finance, Marketing, Human Resource, Business Information Technology Management; Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and Bachelor of Theology.

The degrees were awarded by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to which HCC is affiliated. The university was accredited by the National Accreditation Board in 2015. Also, twenty-three (23) graduates who pursued courses in Intermediate Certificate in Christian Ministry at the Heritage Bible Institute were also commissioned.

This 2nd batch of HCC students had two groups of students who placed HCC on the global stage at the Global Social Innovation Challenge in San Diego USA. The first team, Evans Kwarkye, Benjamin Nketiah and Austin Carboo won the Grand Prize and the Audience Choice Award in the 2018 edition of the contest.

The second team made up of Casmier Avadu, Anthony Cobbina Pendoxa and Benjamin Appiah Bright that pitched virtually were among the Top 10 Finalists in the 2019 edition of the event.