Forum on polytechnics slated for January 6
Stakeholders and all those who matter in the educational sector will converge on the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel on January 6, 2015, to brainstorm the technical universities bill.
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Dubbed the stakeholders consultative forum on the conversion of polytechnics to technical universities, the forum will bring together policy makers, academia, industry, civil society organisations, technocrats and educationists, development partners, informal sector students as well as other relevant stakeholders.
The President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, is expected to open the forum.
The outcomes and recommendations from the forum will help to fine-tune ongoing implementation processes towards the conversion.
President’s pledge
The Deputy Minister of Education in charge of tertiary education, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwah, who briefed the Daily Graphic on the forum, explained that it was in fulfilment of President Mahama’s pledge to upgrade all polytechnics into degree-awarding technical universities.
“This pledge is part of the government’s effort in rebranding technical education, refocusing polytechnic education, addressing academic progression, placement and alignment in the job market and making technical education more attractive to the youth in meeting the country’s development agenda and economic restructuring,” he said.
He said he was hopeful that substantial progress would be made on the conversion of polytechnics in the country into technical universities at the end of the forum.
Rebranding of polytechnic education
Reacting to the fact that some polytechnics were already awarding degrees, Mr Ablakwah stressed that: “It is not just the issue of the kind of degree to be awarded, it is about refocusing, rebranding and changing the structure of the polytechnic education in the country.”
“What we are doing is that we are enhancing the status of the 10 polytechnics. It requires a lot of retooling of the polytechnics and a total overhaul. It is not just a mere change of name. It is a whole different concept,” he told the Daily Graphic.
Mr Ablakwah said countries such as Germany, South Africa, Kenya and the United Kingdom were operating such universities and that was what Ghana was looking up to.
Timelines
Asked whether there was a timeline for the conversion, he said that would be one of the major issues to be brainstormed at the forum, explaining that currently, there were two schools of thought.
“One holds that we should try to implement in one go and the second one is that we should do it in a gradual manner, looking at the need assessment of the 10 polytechnics,” he explained.
The deputy minister explained that government’s policy was that ultimately, all the 10 polytechnics should be converted, stressing that to how the conversion would be done was yet to be determined at the forum.
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