DEVELOPING AND RETAINING THE NEXT GENERATION OF ACADEMICS: EXPERIENCES AND CHALLENGES IN NATIONAL POLICY ENVIRONMENT: THE CASE OF GHANA BY PAUL EFFAH EXECUTIVE SECRETARY NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR TERTIARY EDUCATION, ACCRA, GHANA DEVELOPING AND RETAINING THE NEXT GENERATION OF ACADEMICS: EXPERIENCES AND CHALLENGES IN NATIONAL POLICY ENVIRONMENT: THE CASE OF GHANA BY PAUL EFFAH EXECUTIVE SECRETARY NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR TERTIARY EDUCATION, ACCRA, GHANA.

OUTLINE  The Academic Community  The Role of Academic Staff  Characteristics of World – Class Universities  Statistics on the Ghanaian situation  Policy Interventions  Role of Supervisory Bodies  Conclusion

THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY  Students  Academic staff  Non – academic staff

THE ROLE OF ACADEMIC STAFF  Research, teaching, service and development Summed up in Kerr ( 1963:100 ) “ In every real sense the faculty is the university, its most productive element, its source of distinction ”

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORLD – CLASS UNIVERSITIES (Ambrose King cited by Kathryn Mohrman, 2005)  Prolific faculty publishing in “top – defining” journals  Graduate student body, international in character  Graduates employable anywhere in the world

SOME STATISTICS ON THE GHANAIAN SITUATION  Only an average of 5% of the student population in universities are postgraduates  Only about a third of the academic staff in the universities have PhD’s, normally the acceptable qualification for lectureship position

 The normal academic pyramid should be 20% professoriate, 30% senior lecturers and 50% lecturers. The average respective percentages are 15, 23 and 62. The University of Ghana is an exception with 21, 31 and 48 percent respectively for the various positions.  Only 24% of academic staff are below age 40. About 42% are above 50 with 12% above 60.  High student : teacher ratios persist.

SOME POLICY INTERVENTIONS  Introduction of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund)  GETFund allocation for Faculty Development and Research  Payment of Book and Research Allowance  Improved conditions of service through the development of a 5- year roadmap.

SOME POLICY INTERVENTIONS (Contd)  Scholarships/bursaries including university scholarship schemes  Review of postgraduate studies to emphasize science and technology  Ranking of academic departments  Establishment of internal quality assurance units

 Innovations in postgraduate studies Problem and theme-based Multi disciplinary research Professional socialization through multiple mentoring Professional skills training Inclusion of international components and collaboration Mentoring/apprenticeship SOME POLICY INTERVENTIONS (Contd)

 Development of split-site programmes  Improvement of general academic environment through donor funded projects like the Teaching and Learning Innovation Fund (TALIF) or the Government of Netherlands through NUFFIC

SOME POLICY INTERVENTIONS (Contd)  Introduction of Dual Track Policy;- foreign and Ghanaian fee paying students quota  Introduction of Academic and Residential Facilities User Fees  Introduction of students loan scheme managed by the Students Loan Trust

SOME POLICY INTERVENTIONS (Contd)  Enrolment into science and arts programmes  Freeze on recruitments  Admissions through less endowed senior high schools and bridging programmes  Affirmative action for females  University-Industry partnerships

THE ROLE OF REGULATORY BODIES  NCTE  NAB  NABPTEX

A Thought The tragedy of life is not that we die, but what dies inside a man while he lives. Albert Schweitzer

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