New board for National Council for Tertiary Education
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The board is mandated to, among other things, advise the Minister of Education on the development of tertiary education institutions and on financial matters, including rates of remuneration and other conditions of service for staff of the institutions.
The board is also mandated to recommend national standards and norms and monitor their implementation by the institutions and also publish information on tertiary education.
Board members
The 19-member board is chaired by a former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Professor Clifford Nii Boi Tagoe. It has Professor Ernest Aryeetey and Professor Yakubu Harunna representing the Vice Chancellors, Ghana, while Professor G.K.S. Aflakpui and Alhaji Rahimu Gbadamosi represent the Conference of Rectors of Polytechnics and National Teaching Council, respectively.
Others are Dr A.B. Salifu from the CSIR, Dr George Dawson-Amoah from the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Dr Regina Ohene-Darko Adutwum from the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) and Professor L.A. Boadi from the Academy of Arts and Sciences.
The rest are Mr Enoch Cobinnah from the Ministry of Education, Ms Mary Kane Atigre from the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, Mr Bawa Nuhu Bukari, Ministry of Finance; and Professor Joseph G. Ampiah.
The government nominees on the board are Professor Ohene Adjei, Ms Emma Ofori-Agyemang, Mrs Vivian Amoako, Professor Nii Noi Dowuona, Mrs Sylvia Asempa and Dr Josiah A.M. Cobbah.
Congratulations
Professor Agyemang, while congratulating the board members on their appointments, gave an assurance that her ministry would support them in the realisation of their policy.
She reminded them of the major focus of the NCTE, which is “to oversee the proper administration of institutions designated as institutions of tertiary education in Ghana; to provide for the composition of Council and for related matters”.
The minister said the constraints of funding, the changing landscape of higher education and others “all enjoin us to be even more creative in our responses to the use of resources and innovative in approaches”.
Professor Agyemang reminded the council that the development of policy papers on funding of tertiary education, as well as differentiation and diversification of tertiary education, should target specific interventions that deepened relevance and enhanced quality.
She said the future of tertiary education and, ultimately, the fate of graduates and the country’s development depended, to a large extent, on the diligence of work at the NCTE, adding, “I have no doubt that this council will rise to the occasion.”
Response
Responding, the Chairman of the board, Professor Tagoe, thanked the President and the Minister of Education for the honour done them and assured them that they would work with the ministry to advance the cause of tertiary education in the country.
He said since the inception of the NCTE Act 454 in 1993, the tertiary education sector had grown enormously not only in the number of students but also the number of institutions, especially in private providers.
Professor Tagoe said the composition of the council with individuals from diverse experiences and backgrounds such as academia, industry, research institutions, as well as other stakeholders, “stands us in good stead to be able to perform these functions”.