The School of Graduate Studies at the University of Cape Coast has held its 2021/2022 edition of the Samuel and Emelia Brew-Butler (SGS/GRASAG, UCC) Research Grants Award Ceremony with a call on the awardees to use the grants for its intended purpose.
Out of 82 applications received for the grants, 57 qualified and will share the 300,000 cedis earmarked for the 2021/2022 academic year.
Of this number were fifty-three (53) M.PHIL students and four (4) PhD students.
The Samuel and Emelia Brew-Butler-SGS/GRASAG, UCC Research Grant is a compost fund that is one of the students’ financial services of UCC instituted to assist graduate students in meeting some of their financial obligations during the course of their study.
2021/2022 edition was held on the theme; Postgraduate Research and Knowledge Production in Ghana: Revisiting the Dilemmas of Funding.
Former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), Professor Jophus Anamuah-Mensah noted that postgraduate research is essential as it endows the students with critical minds and skills for research development which contributes to the economic development of the country.
“. Postgraduate research, therefore, opens the minds of students, engages them to develop an analytical and imaginative capability that is required for knowledge production and transfers of knowledge for development.”
Professor Anamuah-Mensah indicated that Universities through postgraduate research should make significant contributions to the economy of the country.
He believes that knowledge production has been touted by many including the World Bank as a factor by which countries such as South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia have achieved economic development.
He revealed that lack of funding is affecting postgraduate research and enrolment in Ghana’s public universities and called on government to fund postgraduate research.
He said “About 98% of the funds to the universities is spent on staff compensations leaving very little for research work and other things. Ghana currently spends 0.4% of GDP on research and development, a figure which is extremely far below that of no known country even in the developing world.”
He also urged the postgraduate students to abstain from research practices that dismiss the voice of African scholars, and the voices of people in the communities.
On his part, the Dean of the Faculty of Law, Prof. Philip Ebow Bondzie-Simpson also urged the graduate students to strive to complete their respective study programs within the stipulated duration and to use the grant received for its intended purposes.
He said, a year, a year and a half, or two years program should not be three-four or five. Also, a three- or four-year program at the doctoral level should not be six-eight or indefinite.
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Source: Eric Sekyi/ATLFMNEWS
