The Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) has received accreditation from the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) to run a one-year Master of Arts programmes in Development Communication (MADC) and Public Relations (MAPR).
The tertiary institution is expected to start its new graduate programmes, in October 2021, under the Department of Liberal Arts and Communications in the School of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (SOLASS).
A statement issued by the school management said the new Master of Arts programmes are part of GIMPA’s agenda to deepen and enhance its contribution to national development.
It said the new programmes have cutting-edge design and execution strategies tailored to promote entrepreneurial skills, innovations and scholarship.
“The Public Relations programme is designed to enable students/participants apply and utilise appropriate analytical tools and technologies to manage and provide the required leadership and communication resources in a dynamic public relations industry.
“It would leverage on concepts and models in an integrated manner to improve skill-sets for consultations, crisis management, decision-making and evaluation at all levels,” it said.
The school management further noted that the Development Communication programme, involves the application of communication for development approaches and strategies to sustainable national and international development efforts. It also develops synergies using information communication technologies to support knowledge transfer, eradication of poverty and secured livelihoods.
“What makes these new programmes unique are the in-built mechanisms of social media analytics, innovations, research and hands-on applications. The programmes design makes adequate provision for the deployment of information communication technology tools and a strong cast of lecturers drawn from both academia and industry. The strong faculty is made up of professionals and experts drawn from the fields of communication, development, management, research, health, public relations, marketing, project management and finance among others,” the statement said.
It indicated that the programmes are national and international in scope and content as they develop synergies to support knowledge transfer, multi-tasking, documentary production, development communication strategies, community development and experiential learning to hone skills in leadership, management and administration.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri