The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) is reviewing its academic curricula and research programmes to meet the current socio-economic needs of society.
Professor Kwasi Obiri-Danso, the Vice-Chancellor, said more emphasis was being placed on research with a focus on technology and innovation development since they were the foundation for building a prosperous society.
“Research, science and technology is the solution to alleviating the high poverty rate, technological gap, low agricultural productivity and infrastructural deficit and the zeal to create wealth amongst the people”, he told participants in a speech read for him, at a symposium at the university in Kumasi.
It brought together some international technocrats and faculty members of the two universities to share ideas, while also seeking technology transfer in order to build their competencies in various research areas of the sciences.
Topics treated ranged from ‘Research Publication’, ‘How to be an Effective Reviewer’, ‘Project-based Learning’ to ‘Understanding Research’.
Prof. Obiri-Danso pointed out that KNUST could not be left out in the changes taking place within the academic corridor through technological advancement and globalization.
He said the university was mobilizing the needed resources towards research activities that would innovate ideas for accelerated socio-economic development.
Prof. William Otoo Ellis, former Vice-Chancellor of KNUST said a total of 20 students from the university were last academic year offered scholarships to study in Arizona.
Thirty students have been selected from the University this year, to pursue courses in engineering and business at the university in America.
Prof. Ellis, who was instrumental in bringing the Mastercard programme to the KNUST, said in all, some 700 brilliant-but-needy students all over the country had been identified to benefit from the initiative within the period of the programme.