His Excellency Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur, Vice-President of the Republic of Ghana
The Vice-President of the Republic of Ghana, His Excellency Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur, and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, have inaugurated a new multi-purpose conference facility for the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana.
The conference facility, financed by the Bank of Ghana, as part of its corporate social responsibility to the University, has a main auditorium with a seating capacity of 1000, a multi-purpose foyer of 600 seating capacity, 8 seminar rooms, 2 computer laboratories, a secretariat for facility management and other auxiliary offices.
Vice-President Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur
The Vice-President Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur, speaking at the ceremony, commended the Bank of Ghana (BoG) for building the multi-purpose conference facility to help promote teaching and learning at the University. He noted the immense contribution made by the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana to BoG’s human resource base, and called for more investments into the Department, to improve its curriculum and enhance its capacity to address gaps between academia, industry, and policy making. He urged the University of Ghana to ensure strict maintenance culture of the facility to complement the effort of the Bank.
Dr. Abdul-Nashiru Issahaku, Governor of the Bank of Ghana
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Abdul-Nashiru Issahaku, in his remarks noted that the new multi-purpose conference facility was an appropriate way to reward the Department of Economics for its contribution to the growth and development of the country. He noted that the role of the Department of Economics in promoting financial literacy was necessary to achieving a sound monetary and financial policy work. He commended the past governors of the Bank of Ghana for their support to the Department in ensuring quality education and relevant courses that would empower students and faculty members to adopt new initiatives that would benefit the country. He appealed to the University to continue training students to solve problems confronting Ghana and the African continent. He also underscored the need for appropriate maintenance culture to safeguard the lifespan of the facility.
Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, Vice-Chancellor of University of Ghana
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, expressed his gratitude to the Bank of Ghana for their immense role in making the project possible. He recounted the support from a number of public institutions to the University of Ghana especially in the area of economics research. He mentioned in particular the assistance from the Bank of Ghana, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ghana Cocoa Board to the Department of Economics, the School of Agriculture, and the Institute for Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) for research and staff development. He assured the Bank of Ghana that the facility would be well maintained to enhance the image of the Department of Economics and the entire University community.
Prof. Peter Quartey, Head of the Department of Economics
The Head of the Department of Economics, Prof. Peter Quartey, presented a background to commencement of the project. He indicated that the completion of the conference facility would enable the Department of Economics and the University community to host many events including international conferences, attract collaborations from other affiliated universities across the world for partnership and joint programme events, among others. He lauded the Vice President Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur, and past governors of the Bank of Ghana for their interest and commitment to the project.
At the inauguration ceremony was staff of Bank of Ghana, members of the Diplomatic Corp, officials and members of the University community, and the general public.
A section of the audience at the ceremony
The unveiled plague showing names of contributors of the project
A view of the conference facility
