Prof. H. Kwasi Prempeh, a luminary in the teaching and practice of law and a good governance and democracy expert and advocate, will deliver the keynote address at the 7th Virtual Annual Congress of the University of Cape Coast Alumni Association, USA on May 25, 2024, moderated by Dr. Ras Tsidi Acolatse.

In his keynote address titled, “A Shared Destiny: The Case for a National Development Plan in Ghana,” Prof. H. Kwasi Prempeh will share his insights on why a Shared Destiny, fostered by a National Development Plan, is crucial for Ghana’s sustainable growth and prosperity.

Prof. H. Kwasi Prempeh is the Executive Director of Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), a civil society think-tank working since 1998 to promote democracy, good governance, and inclusive development in Ghana and the rest of Africa through research, public advocacy, and policy influencing.

A founding member of the CDD-Ghana board, he is also concurrently the founder and Project Director of West Africa Democracy Solidarity Network (WADEMOS), a regional democracy defense network of over 40 civil society organizations operating in the 15-member ECOWAS region.

Prior to taking up his current position at CDD, Prempeh was a professor of law (from 2003 to 2015) at Seton Hall University School of Law (New Jersey, USA). He was a visiting professor at Ghana's GIMPA Law School from 2010 to 2011 and at the Central European University, Budapest, Hungary, from 2014 to 2023.

Between 2013 and 2014, he consulted for the UN in Yemen on a post-conflict constitution for the Middle East as well as constitutional design matters for South Sudan and the Gambia. He has written and lectured extensively on issues of democratization, constitutionalism, and constitutional design and reform in contemporary Africa.

In 2017, Prempeh served as special counsel to the Attorney-General of Ghana in connection with the Ghana-Cote d’Ivoire Maritime Boundary Delimitation case, which was adjudicated in Ghana’s favor by the International Tribunal of the Law of the Seas.

The University of Cape Coast Alumni Association, USA was formed in April 2016 with the mission to support the alma mater through the provision of resources, facilitating collaboration with institutions of higher learning in Ghana and the United States of America to boost academic excellence, and promoting the interest of UCC alumni in the USA through networking and support.

Since its founding, the association has completed two projects at the UCC campus. In 2019, 10 solar-powered lamps were installed to enhance campus safety and security. In 2022, the association collaborated with the Carnegie Foundation through its Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship Program and the School of Physical Sciences, UCC, and set up the Center for Computational Thinking, a 20-node computational cluster and a computer laboratory with 20 computers for use by students and faculty to facilitate teaching, learning, and research.

Presently, the association is spearheading a fundraiser to furnish and equip a newly established Center for Disability and Disability Studies at UCC. We implore corporate donors to set aside some of their Corporate Social Responsibility budget to support this noble cause. We will come knocking soon.

The Congress will be held via Zoom: - Meeting ID: 899-0059-1436 and Passcode: Con2024

Signed

Dr. Ras Tsidi Acolatse (National Events & Programs Director)

Dr. Henry Amedeker (National Deputy Communication Director)