Minister inaugurates 15-member governing Board of NAB
The Minister of Education, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Tuesday inaugurated a 15-member governing board of the National Accreditation Board (NAB) and charged them to use their experience to sanitise tertiary education in the country in order to restore integrity in the system.
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He reminded them of their crucial role in ensuring quality, effectiveness and efficiency in all institutions, urging them to ensure that the role of the NAB as a gatekeeper in ensuring quality was not lost.
Membership of the Board
The Board, chaired by Professor Kofi Awusabo-Asare, a government nominee, has its members as Mr Kwame Dattey of the NAB, the Very Rev. Ama Afo Blay, and Professor Juventus Benogle Ziem as government nominees. Professor Mohammed Salifu representing the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE), Rev. Professor Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante, representing the Ghana Association of Private Tertiary Institutions.
The others are Professor Boasiako Omane-Antwi, representing the Council of Independent Universities, Mr Gerald Dapaah Gyamfi, representing the Association of Recognised Professional Bodies, Ghana, Professor Smile Gavua Dzisi (Mrs), the Conference of Rectors of Polytechnics, Professor Ebenezer Oduro Owusu and Professor Mawutor Avoke, representing the Vice-Chancellors of the University of Ghana and University of Education Winniba, respectively.
The rest are Mr Robertson Akwei Allotey, Police Services Commission, the Very Rev. Sam Nii Nmai Ollenu, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Mrs Sheila Naah Boamah of the National Board for Professional and Technical Examinations, and Mrs Stella Otema Badu, representing the Attorney General’s Department.
Expertise of members
Dr Prempeh reminded the members of the board that, “The President has taken cognisance of the experience you will be bringing on board to impact on the operations of the board.”
He said they were selected based on their proven integrity and high sense of duty and was hopeful that they would bring those worthy attributes to bear in the discharge of the responsibility they had been entrusted with.
Dr Prempeh said government was committed to providing excellence in all institutions of higher learning in the country, adding that the NAB played an important role in providing professional advice to the minister on the standards, requirements criteria and norms.
Merger
He announced that the government intended to merge the NTCE and the NAB into a unified commission or council to regulate the tertiary education space.
The minister charged the members to work to ensure that they produce a draft bill to that effect before September this year.
In addition, he charged them to improve the quality assurance in programmes delivery, adding, “NAB must strengthen structures and systems to improve quality assurance, including looking at best practices around the world.”
Dr Prempeh further urged the board to constantly engage the public through press releases, publications of data on basic structures and a regular publication of accredited and unaccredited institutions.
Presidential Charter
Speaking on Presidential Charter of universities, he encouraged the board to “continue with its comprehensive assessment of Presidential Charter without compromising on quality. Critical areas that need to be addressed in this process must be obvious to the applicants at the start,” and urged them to embark on a more vigorous and professional approach on that matter.
He expressed worry over what he described as “the growing spate of honorary doctorate degrees” by unauthorised and unaccredited institutions and charged the board to sanitise the system and process in order to restore integrity to honorary doctorate degrees by institutions.
