President Akufo-Addo has commissioned a 680-bed residential facility for students of the University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) in the Ho municipality to climax the University’s 10th anniversary.
The facility situated at the UHAS permanent campus at Sokode-Lokoe was christened the ‘Sokode Hall of Residence’ in appreciation of the Sokode traditional area.
A similar facility named ‘Asogli Hall of Residence’ was commissioned a few months ago at the Trafalgar campus near the Ho Teaching Hospital. Both edifices were financed through the Internally Generated Funds (IGF) of the University.
Speaking at the anniversary durbar, President Akufo-Addo applauded the leadership of UHAS for the judicious use of the university’s IGF to provide such critical infrastructure and said it was worthy of commendation and emulation by other institutions of higher learning in the country.
He said the government’s commitment to supporting UHAS to deliver on its mandate of training quality healthcare professionals, and engaging in research and community service remained resolute.
He, therefore, assured that the second phase of the UHAS main campus project which he cut sod for in September 2021 will be completed on schedule.
The project which comprises the School of Nursing and Midwifery and a Central Administration is being funded at the cost of 68 million dollars by China Aid.
The Government of Ghana is providing a GHS 6.2 million in counterpart funding for the provision of public utilities, including access roads to the site. It is currently 36 percent complete and scheduled for completion in March 2024.
He commended the past and present council, management, and staff of UHAS for their dedication to duty, which has seen the infant university established during the tenure of late President Atta-Mills by an Act of Parliament, Act 868 of 2011, growing from 155 in 2012 to over 7000 presently.
He added that the achievements of UHAS have seen it rub shoulders with other age-old institutions in the country and beyond with over 5,000 graduates globally. President Akufo-Addo commended UHAS for its impeccable health research credentials and various global rankings, including the recent Times High Education Impact Rankings 2022, which ranked the university number one in the SDG 3 category.
Chairman of UHAS Council, Justice Jones Victor Mawulorm Dotse commended the foundation council and first Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Fred Binkah for laying a strong foundation. He commended successive governments for their support and prayed for the speedy completion of all ongoing projects at both the Ho and Hohoe campuses of the university to address the infrastructure inadequacies.
The Vice-Chancellor, Professor John Owusu Gyapong whose 6-year tenure ends on 31st July, said has so far established ten out of eleven academic units. Additionally, it has rolled out 19 undergraduate and nine postgraduate programmes across its nine schools and two institutes.
He stressed that UHAS is now a household brand with so much recognition and acceptance among its peers and stakeholders by dint of hard work.
From Fred Duodu, Ho (k.duodu@yahoo.com)