Graphic, UGBS deepen business relations
The Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), has signed a memorandum of understanding with the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS) to enable them to complement each other in their activities.
The MoU seeks to enable the two institutions to collaborate to promote the development of joint studies, research, training and other educational programmes of mutual interest.
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Other areas are exchange programmes for students, faculty and staff.
There will also be mutual access to materials, documents and equipment and the promotion of research materials of the university to enrich content of the GCGL brands.
The Dean of the UGBS, Professor Justice Nyigmah Bawole, signed the MoU on behalf of the school, while the Managing Director (MD) of the GCGL, Ato Afful, initialed it for the group.
The signing ceremony, which took place yesterday, was witnessed by the Deputy Registrar of the UGBS, Emmanuel Poku-Sarkodee, and a senior lecturer at the Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship of the UGBS, Dr Raphael Odoom, on the side of the university, while the Director, Marketing, Franklin Sowa, and the acting Editor of the Graphic Business, Charles Benoni Okine, witnessed the signing on the side of the GCGL.
Satisfaction
Prof. Bawole expressed his satisfaction with the partnership, saying it would pave the way for the two parties to work together for their mutual benefit.
He said the school was established as the College of Administration by Executive Instrument (E.I.127) at Achimota, Accra in January 1960.
It started business in January 1960 on the old Western Compound of Achimota School, with the old Department of Commerce of the Kumasi College of Technology, established in 1952 (now KNUST) as its nucleus campus.
“We have gone through a lot of good and bad times to evolve into a world-class institution which currently has 103 lecturers providing services to 16,000 students. The school initially started with 192 students,” he said.
Responsive departments
The dean explained that the school operated very responsive departments that developed programmes to train more students to become global leaders.
As a market leader, Prof. Bawole indicated, the school was unable to renege on the population that it served and so it had, over the years, taken steps to deliberately expand.
“We have developed a new strategy which seeks to collaborate with and leverage relations with institutions such as the GCGL to reach out, using powerful communication,” he said.
Strategic partnership
For his part, the MD of the GCGL underlined the need for the university to engage through strategic partnerships that could impact positively on the citizenry.
He said the GCGL saw the university as an avenue where thought leadership of the country should be generated and communicated to the public.
“It is critical that at the faculty level we can communicate and share expertise with industry. The GCGL, for its part, has the channels, such as the Daily Graphic, the Graphic Business, The Mirror and others, to disseminate information in and beyond Ghana,” he said.
“The Graphic brands are also available to the students to exhibit their talent for industry to learn,” Mr Afful added.
Relevant brand
Corroborating the views of the MD, Mr Sowa noted that the GCGL had, over the years, invested consistently to make its brands relevant.
He said while the company had taken steps to carefully integrate digital technology into its operations, its hard copy prints were still strong in the market.
“We believe this partnership is the most credible opportunity to add value and promote the country,” Mr Sowa, an alumnus of the UGBS, added.
Opportunities for students
For his part, Mr Okine said the Graphic Business would soon introduce columns for students to share their expertise on business models to secure sponsorship from the banks.
“We are also planning to create some kind of periodic competition among students to prepare them ahead of national competitions such as the Graphic Business Tertiary Business Sense Challenge (TBSC),” he added.