The Centre for Gender Research, Advocacy and Documentation (CEGRAD) at the University of Cape Coast with Freie Universität Berlin has held its first south-south dissemination workshop with the anticipation that the institutionalization of equal opportunity structures and practices in the University of Cape Coast will expand to other universities in Ghana and in Africa as a whole.
The workshop which is part of the activities of the four-year Equal Opportunities in Higher Education: Partnership for Institutional Change (EQUIP) project housed by CEGRAD helped to reveal the project to sister universities in Ghana who were yet to introduce it in their institutions among others.
Speaking to ATL FM NEWS on the sidelines of the event, the principal investigator of (EQUIP) in UCC, Professor Akua Opokua Britwum expressed confidence that the University of Cape Coast will provide assistance to CEGRAD as it leads other universities to institutionalize equal opportunity structures.
“Now that UCC is a shining spot within Africa and within the sub-region, we believe that this position that CEGRAD has adopted to lead this institutionalization of equality practices, structures, and institutions within universities will still place us in a very good spot and we are hopeful; looking at the kind of support CEGRAD has received from the university, that it continues to finance it and support it, we are hopeful that the University will buy into this project,” she said.
On her part, Dr. Kanana Fridah Erastus, a team member from Kenyatta University, which is a new partner to the project, applauded CEGRAD for the work it has done so far in helping to institutionalize equal opportunity structures in the University of Cape Coast.
She indicated their aim of participating in the workshop was to learn about what the University of Cape Coast has done so far with regards to the EQUIP project and see the materials that they have developed.
She notes that “after taking part in this workshop, what really struck me is how this Center has been able to embed all the departments in the university because gender issues really often are associated with women and the social sciences. However, even the leadership of CEGRAD has had people from the natural sciences. I think this is a take-home for us.”
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Source: Rosemond Asmah & Emmanuella Ama Gyamfi/ATLFMNEWS