The Career Development Centre, a capacity-building facility of the College of Health Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), has been inaugurated in Kumasi.

The novelty project, which would help improve the professional competence of faculty members, is also part of the University’s career-development programmes to bring its lecturers to the cutting edge of competitive global trends of research and teaching.

It was financed by The Malaria Capacity Development Consortium (MCDC), a project under the auspices of the Welcome Trust and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Professor Tsiri Agbenyega, Provost of the College of Health Sciences, said the Centre is targeting for training, faculty members and administrative staff of the College, who could form a critical mass of the world’s academia.

He said the academia had in recent times become more competitive and knowledge-based in the face of advancement in technology, and that, this underscores the need for faculty members to sharpen their skills, saying that, “this is what the College is committed to do”.

Already, the University had put in place programmes such as the annual summer school, faculty exchange and mentorship programmes to build the capacities of its faculty members.

Professor Agbenyega encouraged the junior faculty members to strive for excellence in their career development to enhance their performance.

Mr. Harry Tagbor, the Coordinator of the MCDC, indicated that the Centre would evolve and run staff development programmes tailored to meet the needs of faculty members.

The Centre, he said, intends to train about 200 lecturers in the coming months for effective academic work.