Winneba (C/R), Sept. 12, GNA- The Senior Minister, Mr Joseph Henry Mensah on Saturday urged institutions responsible for the training of the nation's manpower resources to turn out qualified people for the development of the nation.

He pointed out that no nation could develop without its manpower being properly trained to increase productivity. It is therefore in this regard, that the government was doing its best to change the present system of education in the basic and secondary school. Mr Mensah was addressing the eighth Congregation of the University of Education Winneba, (UEW) at Winneba where a total of more than 3,000 students from the Kumasi, Mampong and Winneba campuses graduated from the University in 2001/2002 and 2002/2003.

The Senior Minister said that within the next few weeks the government would publish the report of the Education Review Committee and solicit views from the public where necessary to enable the nation to have a better education system that could enhance the development of the country.

Mr Mensah said that the government would continue to provide institutions including the UEW to enable them to train qualified people for the country's manpower requirements.

Chairman of the University Council, Professor Jerome Djangmah appealed to the government to continue maintaining an "appreciable level of funding" for the state-owned universities.

He said major cuts to university funding and the untimely release of approved funds were likely to have repercussion on quality of teaching and learning and therefore, make it difficult to achieve the desired objective.

The Universities are increasingly finding it difficult to recruit and retain high calibre of academic staff, senior administrative and professional staff due to poor remuneration and other unattractive conditions of service.

He said the UEW has set up the Office of Institutional Advancement with the responsibility of raising funds locally and internationally to support its programme and to supplement government efforts. In a welcoming address, the Vic-Chancellor of the University, Professor Jophus Anamuah-Mensah said the University, which started with 1,889 students in 1982 now has 16,000 with about 6,000 with the Distance Education programme.

He said that the infrastructure development in the university did not commensurate with the growth in students' intake and appealed to the government to increase facilities at the campus.

In 2001/2002, 34 students made up of 22 males and 12 female had First Class Upper, while 470 students made up of 197 females and 273 males got Second class Upper.

Sixteen students made up of a female and 15 males obtained First Class Upper in 2002/2003 academic year, while 474 students involving 346 males and 128 female had second class Upper.