The Dean of the Faculty of Arts in the University of Cape Coast Professor Dora Edu Buandoh has said respecting other cultures make us one people. She said as Ghanaians, we should show our identity as people who are hospitable. She maintained that Africa is one continent, therefore divisions will not be necessary. Professor Edu Buandoh made this call at a dinner organized by the French Department of UCC to see off some Togolese students who came to the University to enhance their proficiency in the English language. In an interview with ATL FM, Professor Edu Buandoh observed that exchange programmes help students to learn and appreciate other people's culture which brings Africans together as one people. She advised students from other Departments to take advantage of the exchange Programme to enhance their skills in other fields of their training. The leader of the students' group from Togo Fauzia Yawa spoke to ATL FM on how the Programme has benefited them. Source: atlfmonline.com

The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. D. D. Kuupole has underscored the University of Cape Coast’s commitment to maintaining its symbiotic relationship with the Colleges of Education.

Prof. Kuupole noted that with the upgrade of Colleges of Education (CoE) to tertiary status, UCC has the responsibility to offer the best form of mentorship to the 43 Colleges that have signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University.

The Vice-Chancellor made these remarks when he addressed management and staff of some Colleges in the Central, Eastern and Ashanti Regions as part of his nationwide tour to Colleges of Education affiliated to the University of Cape Coast.

Purpose of Visit

Prof. Kuupole explained that the relationship between UCC and the CoE has entered into another phase and therefore it was important to meet management and staff of the various Colleges to discuss the responsibilities and expectations of the two partners. He described the visit as a “listening tour” indicating that “we are here to listen to your concerns, challenges, expectations and aspirations regarding our relationship with you.”

The upgrade of the CoE to tertiary status demands that Colleges would have to change their mode of operation to match the standards set by the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE) and the National Accreditation Board (NAB), the Vice-Chancellor stated. He noted staff of the CoE should possess the requisite qualification and competence to work in the Colleges.

The mandate of the Professional Board

Prof. Kuupole pointed out that all decisions concerning the academic work of the Colleges of Education emanate from the Professional Board and not the University of Cape Coast. The Professional Board is made up all the Principals of both public and private CoE, 10 representatives from the UCC including the Vice-Chancellor who chairs the Board, a representative of NCTE, Teacher Education Division and the Ghana National Association of Teachers, he explained.

Vice-Chancellor’s Team

The Vice-Chancellor embarked on the visit with a team from the Institute of Education comprising the Director, Prof. Frederick Ocansey, Coordinator of Research and Publication, Dr.(Mrs.) Alfredina Kuupole, Senior Assistant Registrar, Mr. Prosper Nyatuame and Accountant, Mr. Daniel Abina Dwaase.  

Capacity Building for Tutors and Staff of CoE

Speaking of opportunities available for upgrading, Prof. Ocansey said that the University has mounted several postgraduate programmes which the tutors, administrative and professional staff could pursue at UCC. He also announced that the University could mount specific programmes upon request for the Colleges on distance bases.  “We can even bring lecturers to the various regions to lecture provided a number of tutors and other non-teaching staff enrol on such programmes so that you can work and still upgrade yourself,” he announced.

Research

Dr. (Mrs.) Kuupole reminded the tutors that their promotion would depend on the number of research articles they produce stressing that “In the tertiary institution, you either publish or perish”.  She assured the tutors that the Institute of Education would soon organise workshops to strengthen their skills in the area of the research proposal, grant and article writing.

Colleges Visited

Seventh Day Adventist College of Education, Asokore-Koforidua- Eastern Region

Kibi Presbyterian College of Education, Kibi-Eastern Region

Abetifi Presbyterian College of Education, Abetifi-Eastern Region

Agogo Presbyterian Women’s College of Education, Agogo-Ashanti Region

Methodist College of Education, Oda-Eastern Region

Christ the Teacher College of Education, Kumasi-Ashanti Region

Ola College of Education, Cape Coast-Central Region

Komenda College of Education, Komenda-Central Region

Foso College of Education, Assin Foso-Central Region

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An alumna of the University of Cape Coast resident in the United States of America, Prof. Grace Lartey, has called on the Pro-Vice-Chancellor Prof. G. K. T. Oduro at his office.

Prof. Lartey who graduated from the University in 1998 is on a month-long visit to the country and decided to visit the university.

Briefing her, Prof. Oduro indicated though a lot has happened in terms of development, there were still a lot of challenges facing the University. In view of this, he called on alumni to mobilise and provide the needed support to enable the University train more people. “These days it is the alumni that help in supporting all the renowned universities the world-over in their running”, he explained. He noted that management of UCC cherished the enthusiasm of the USA branch of the Alumni Association and urged them to work harder to increase their membership.

Prof. Lartey gave the assurance that they were looking forward to giving back to the university “in whatever shape or form”. She said due to the size and spread of alumni across the USA it was quite difficult to mobilise them however they were working hard to put things together to become a formidable association.

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The Department of Sociology and Anthropology has organised the fifth Annual Conference on Social Behaviour and Conflict Management with a call on government, security agencies and election stakeholders to ensure a peace in the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary Elections in the country.

The 2016 edition of the conference was on the theme “Managing Electoral Conflicts in Ghana’s 2016 Elections: Prospects and Challenges.”

Speaking on the topic “Setting the Agenda for Peaceful, Free and Fair Elections, the Central Regional Director of the Electoral Commission, Mrs. Philomina Edusei said the commission would continue to engage all political parties and other stakeholders to ensure free and fair elections in the country. She noted that the Electoral Commission (EC) has put in place measures to improve on the conduct of this year’s election. Some of the measures include upgrading of the Biometric Verification Devices (BVD); recruitment of qualified and competent electoral officers; projection of election results at the constituency and replacement of the “strong room” with National Coalition Centre at the national level.

The second speaker for the conference, Dr. Bossman Asare who is the Head of the Department of Political Sciences, University of Ghana in his presentation on Voting Without Fear or Favour: the Security Services as Inevitable Imperatives" called on the State to create the enabling environment for free voting. “The security of the State lies in the domain of the State and this is the prime duty of the president,” he noted. He called on the security agencies to make security arrangements on the election day public and also advised political parties to follow laid down procedures.

Dr. Asare said the security services can effectively maintain peace in the country before, during and after elections if they collaborate with other election stakeholders. While recognising the challenges of voting in many emerging societies including Ghana, he made a strong case for mainstreaming of security services in an effort to ensure that the will of voters reflected in the outcome of the upcoming elections.

An International Conflict Management Expert, Dr. Joseph Kingsley Adjei in his presentation recommended non-partisan approach by the EC and the security services. He called for nonviolent and decorous behaviour on the part of political parties and their supporters to ensure free and fair elections. He spoke on the theme “Adding up or Falling Apart: Ghana’s Litmus Test in the 2016 Elections”. 

Dr. Adjei observed that the dynamics of the pre-election processes look quite gloomy when viewed against issues of mistrust between and among political parties saying “certain issues put the country’s election to litmus test and these include the appointment of the Chairperson of the EC, Voters registration which was characterised by irregularities and legality of voters particularly those who registered with National Health Insurance Cards".

The International Conflict Management Expert expressed worry about the polarised media space between the two major political parties and appealed to the National Media Commission to sanction media houses that violate the rules of the game.

Present at the Conference were the Provost, College of Humanities and Legal Studies, Prof. Stephen Kendie; Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, Prof. Francis Amuquandoh; Head, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Dr. Brempong Osei Tutu.

Others were a cross section of personnel from the security services, Civil Society Groups and the University Community.

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