Cape Coast, March 18, GNA - The Sam Jonah Endowment Fund that was launched last year to enhance research and academic work at the University of Cape Coast (UCC) has yielded 5.713 billion cedis in the form of donation and pledges.

Already, a substantial part of the amount has been given to the UCC fund that was set up by Mr Sam Jonah, Chancellor of the University. Mrs Elizabeth Villars, a member of the UCC council, said this on Friday when she inaugurated an 11-member board of trustees to manage the fund.

The board is under the chairmanship of Nana Pra Agyensaim, chief of Assin Kushia.

Mrs Villars stressed the importance of such funds to supplementing government efforts and said there was the need to search for a way of making all stakeholders to contribute to them. She praised Mr Jonah for setting up the fund and described it as the biggest for any educational institution in the country and called for its prudent management.

Nana Agyensaim assured the UCC authority that the fund would be well administered.

The UCC had earlier signed memoranda of understanding with Amadu Bello University of Nigeria for a five-year academic development exchange programme.

The programme, which among others involved research work and exchange of staff, is being started with the agricultural extension pro0gramme.

Rev. Professor Emmanuel Addo Obeng, the Vice Chancellor of UCC, signed for the UCC while Prof T.K Atala, Dean of Faculty of Agriculture of the Amadu Bello University signed on behalf of his institution. 18 March 05