GIJ Masters Students Graduate

The Ghana Institute of Journalism has graduated the second batch of students despite the absence of a substantive governing council, which is yet to be constituted by government.

The ceremony, expected to have been held in February, this year, was delayed due to the expiration of the tenure of the governing council, which had the mandate to confirm the degrees to be conferred on the graduate students.

But after several months, a total of about 112 students graduated with Master of Arts degrees in journalism, public relations, media management and development communications last Saturday.

Professor Mohammed Salifu, Executive Secretary of the National Commission on Tertiary Education (NCTE) and stand-in chair of the GIJ Governing Council, which is yet to be fully constituted, who addressed the congregation, said government was in the process of constituting new governing councils for public tertiary education institutions.

“It would not be long before the Ghana Institute of Journalism has its own full-fledged Governing Council in place,” he said.

Prof Salifu commended the GIJ for finding a niche area in communications, but urged the academic staff to conduct research.

He said the graduate and research programmes provided a medium through which the university could create new knowledge and innovations to address societal problems and demonstrate its relevance to the national economy.

“A national research fund is also in the offing to provide the resources for competitive research into key areas of national policy,” he said.

Professor Kwesi Yankah, Minister of State in-charge of Tertiary Education, in his remarks, expressed concern over the rareness of research data for development planning in Ghana.

He urged the graduates to endeavour to add value to the nation's planning through their research.

“Where planning in 20th Century Africa was fed on empty data, here we come with tools that can change the destiny of this country, the destiny of journalism and communications,” he said.

Wilberforce Dzisah, Rector of the GIJ, commended the second batch of graduates for their patience and tolerance in enduring the 'pain and agony of waiting all this while to be graduated.'

He said the GIJ's graduate programmes have gained popularity and influence, with the number of applicants admitted increasing from 135 in 2015 when the programme started to 243 students.

The event was held under the theme, 'The role of communication in bridging the gap between academia and industry.'