UEW, the Premier University to Collaborate with JAK Foundation

Ag. VC, UEW, Rev. Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni third from right in a group picture with officials of JAK Foundation and some UEW Academic Heads

On Wednesday 31^st January, 2018, officials of the John Agyekum Kufuor (JAK) Foundation paid a courtesy visit to the Acting Vice-Chancellor, Rev. Fr. Prof. Anthony Afful-Broni and some Academic Heads at the Council Chamber, North Campus.

The visit discussed how best the Foundation could collaborate with the University in the area of leadership. Besides, the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) is the first tertiary institution in Ghana to experience this collaboration.

The Policy Adviser of JAK Foundation, Mrs. Nana Ama Oppong-Duah explained that the main purpose for the meeting was to see how best they could collaborate with UEW to organise public lectures on topics that would excite and stimulate the interest of tertiary students.  

The Coordinator of Kufuor Scholars Program, Dr. Pascal Brenya extended greetings from the former president of Ghana, Dr. John Agyekum Kufuor and the CEO of JAK Foundation, Prof. Baffour Agyeman Duah to UEW and its management. He added that the former president who is also an alumnus of UEW was passionate about finding remedies to Africa’s poor leadership problem. Therefore to help solve this problem, Dr. Kufuor developed a strategy which ended up in the formation of the JAK Foundation.

The Kufuor Scholars Program currently has 34 members with four beneficiaries from the UEW (two from Winneba and two from Mampong Campuses) who are being groomed to become prolific leaders in future.   

The Foundation is in the process of increasing its beneficiaries, thus, application is opened to every tertiary student who has interest in leadership.

It seeks to project both governance and economic development of Africa. As a result, it operates on three main pillars which include: Socio-economic Development, Governance and Leadership.

With the Leadership Pillar, students who desire to be leaders are given leadership skills and a stipend. The Governance Pillar usually organise seminars with prominent persons to share ideas on governance in the various fields which they operate, whereas the Socio-economic Pillar focuses on improving agriculture and nutrition.    

Specifically, one of the projects in Agriculture is the competitive Africa Rice Initiative where Ghana and other countries like Burkina Faso, Nigeria and Tanzania are supported to become self-sufficient in rice production.  

The Acting Vice-Chancellor expressed happiness upon the recognition given to the University and indicted the Institution’s readiness to support the good course of the Foundation.

Present at the meeting were the Registrar, UEW, Surv. Paul Osei-Barima Esq, Director of Finance, JAK Foundation, Mr. Victor Kofi Kufuor, Deans and three beneficiaries of the Kufuor Scholars Program.

During the Meeting