Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has challenged universities and other institutions of higher learning to bring innovation into their programmes and teach the students the relevant skills.

He said providing the students with the appropriate skills would prepare them to to apply the knowledge acquired to solve problems.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur was speaking at the second congregation of the Catholic Institute of Business and Technology (CIBT) in Accra. The batch of graduates completed their studies at the end of the 2011/2012 academic year.

The CIBT was established in 2007 under the auspices of the Catholic Archdiocese of Accra with the aim of equipping students with the necessary resources to help them respond effectively as leaders in business, professional and civil life.

The CIBT is accredited by the National Accreditation Board and affiliated to the University of Ghana.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur commended the Catholic Church for its contribution to education in Ghana over the years.

He said the establishment of CIBT had allowed many young people to benefit from tertiary education who would have been denied the opportunity due to the lack of space in the public universities.

He gave the assurance that government would engage with authorities of CIBT to determine the type of support required for its development and other private tertiary institutions.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur said university education was critical to wellbeing of any nation and importantly CIBT offered specialised programmes in Business Administration, Entrepreneurship, and Computer Science that satisfied a very critical need for this economy.

He said the success of the catholic education institutions over the years could be attributed to a positive philosophy and theology of education backed by good administration and management practices, adding that they should instill moral principles in students at all levels of education.

He praised the new grandaunts for their hard work and advised them to apply the knowledge acquired to solve societal problems since they were expected to impact society with moral values in the capacities in which they served.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur said a graduation ceremony was just the rite of passage and marked the transition from one place of life to another.

He, therefore, urged the new graduates to leave behind the notion of being of a student under instructions and transit to a new role that used the knowledge and skills they had acquired in more innovative ways to solve the problems of our society.

Most Reverend Gabriel Palmer Buckle, Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra and Chancellor of CIBT, called for the spirit of volunteerism among the youth in the country.

He said they must volunteer to serve in any capacity and in all parts of the country.

In all 63 students graduated with Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, Public Administration and Computer Science, while 25 students received MBA in Global Business and Sustainability with specialisation in Social Entrepreneurship.

Ms Flora Agyayewaa Nyarko and Ms Rosabel Forceby were adjudged the overall best students in the graduate division for 2013 and 2014 respectively, while Mr Stephen Eku was adjudged the overall best student for the MBA division.