Government will resource tertiary institutions-President Mills

Mampong (Ash), Nov 6. GNA - President John Evans Atta Mills has said Government will resource tertiary institutions to enable them to operate at optimal level.

He said the role of tertiary institutions in national development through the production of high level and career-focused skilled human capital to support the country's growth was indispensable.

President Mills said this in a speech read on his behalf at the 14th Congregation of the Mampong College of Agriculture Education, University of Education Winneba, at Mampong on Friday.

He noted that agriculture was critical to the national economy and urged the University to help inject efficiency into the sector.

President Mills asked the University to train teachers for agricultural education at the basic and secondary levels of education.

"Our children need to be assisted to explore and understand the environment around them, much of which is located in science and agriculture and to appreciate the role of agriculture in national development."

President Mills said the upgrading of the Teacher Training Colleges to Diploma awarding institutions was associated with the major challenge of how to review the curricula and development of personnel staff, particularly the teaching staff, to be relevant at the tertiary level.

He said "I wish to appeal to the University to assist the colleges of education with the upgrading of their staff and curricula."

President Mills called on the graduates to place the knowledge and skills acquired at the service of the nation.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University Professor Kwasi Asabere-Ameyaw, announced that from next year, the College of Agriculture Education would establish a second faculty to expand its academic programmes to turn out agricultural scientists and educators to transform the country's agriculture.

He said the University has established a 10-acre cocoa farm, 15-acre oil-palm plantation, five acres of coconut, an acre of citrus, a two-acre coffee plantation and 15 acres of maize for research work.

Prof Asabere-Ameyaw appealed to government to up-grade the infrastructure of the College and build more staff bungalows to facilitate teaching and learning.

Nana Okofo Bundam Amoako III, Chairman of the University Governing Council, said the College has trained 19 chiefs of the Asante-Mampong Traditional Council in grass cutter rearing and planned to train people in bee-keeping and mushroom production.

GNA