The CSIR College of Science and Technology (CCST), has envisioned increasing the output of its postgraduate training by ten-fold in the next decade.

Professor Jophus Anamuah-Mensah, the Board Chairman, said the projection fell within the College’s strategic plan to expand the pool of youth with practical knowledge, technology, innovative and entrepreneurship skills for Ghana’s sustainable development.

“Today, countries that have paid serious attention to science and technology-based education have raised their economies to a very high level,” he observed, and bemoaned the high deficiency rate of researchers in sub-Saharan Africa.

Citing the UNESCO Institute for Statistics 2017 data, he indicated that on the average, sub-Saharan Africa had only 88 researchers per million people, while the global average was 1, 081 researchers per million.

Prof. Anamuah-Mensah, who was addressing the maiden congregation ceremony of the College at Fumesua near Kumasi, said “The vision of CCST is to become the leading provider of quality science and technology education, research, innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa.”

The programme coincided with the investiture of Prof. Mark Appiah as the CCST President. In all, twenty (20) students graduated with Masters of Philosophy in various fields, including; climate change and integrated resource management, food science and technology, plant breeding and biotechnology.

The programme had in attendance some representatives of University of Cape Coast (UCC), which was the College’s main local partner and mentoring university, and the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI).

Prof. Anamuah-Mensah said the College’s programmes were practically-oriented, industry-focused and based on areas relevant to the nation’s development agenda.

“We, therefore, follow the triple helix model of innovation, where we interact intensively with industry and the government to foster economic and social development,” he emphasized.

He said in the current globalized environment, where science, technology, research and innovation, had become critical to the development of nations, the CCST, which takes its roots and mandate from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, would work harder to achieve its mission and vision.

Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, lauded the College for its vision to churning out practically-oriented graduates.

This is because any country that took science, technology and innovation seriously exhibited the characteristics of prosperity.