ATU 5-year plan kicks off
The Accra Technical University (ATU) has started the implementation of a five-year Strategic Plan that will enable the institution to respond to current trends and make it the preferred technical training institution.
The Vice Chancellor of ATU, Professor Samuel Nii Odai, who disclosed this at the 21st Congregation for Bachelor of Technology (BTECH) students last Saturday, said the eight-strategic pillars of the plan included enhancing students experience, being an impact-oriented research and innovation institution, increasing industry and community engagement, internationalisation and enhancing the visibility of the university.
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The vice chancellor added that the strategy would also ensure that the technical university made available appropriate infrastructure and systems, held quality and motivated human resources, deployed effective governance, and provided staff welfare and support services.
Congregation
A total number of 844 students were conferred with Bachelor of Technology (BTECH) Degrees in various disciplines such as Engineering, Applied Sciences, Built Environment, Business and Applied Arts.
Prof. Odai said the graduands represented over 100 per cent increase over the previous year.
Advice
The vice-chancellor advised the graduands to “continue to explore avenues for self-advancement, live by good principles and shun flippancy, and always be best."
He encouraged them to be proud ambassadors of the institution.
STEM
The Deputy Minister for Education, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, said technology had advanced and brought about many innovative across the world, as a result of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), which unfortunately had very few people pursuing in the country.
Rev. Fordjour explained that that had caused the government to rethink education of which the Ministry of Education was leading the charge in bringing the transformation.
“This is why we have introduced the Pre-Engineering policy which has made it possible for people without science background to pursue science related programmes,” the deputy education minister said.
Impact your community
The Chairman of the Governing Council of ATU, Dr Wilfred Anim-Odame, congratulated the graduates on their endeavours and urged them to make an impact on the country and the global market.
He disclosed that the council was working with the management of the university to enhance teaching and research.
Job availability
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Founder of Sava Shea Company Limited, Ms Ruth Wewura Guribie, the guest speaker, who addressed the theme ‘Technical and Vocational Training for Employment and Job Creation”, said although education led to employability and economic gains, “there is a mounting youthful unemployed population in Ghana”.
Ms Guribie implored the government to provide adequate budgetary allocations to institutions “to ensure that well trained staff and quality facilities that reflect new technologies and learning methods are available”.