The second University of Ghana (UG) Research report was launched in line with its policy to shape and contribute to the developmental agenda of Ghana.

This, the UG said lies in its research and innovative abilities.

The UG Research Report is an initiative of the Office of Research, Innovation and Development (ORID), which aims to highlight the research activities of the university.

“The development of this report complements our mandate, which is to foster and enhance research activities at the University of Ghana” said Prof John Gyapong Pro-Vice Chancellor, ORID and noted that it was also to provide an overview for the UG for the year in review as well as make it readable. .

ORID’s key mandate is to promote, coordinate and facilitate research and to use these reports to disseminate its research activities to a wider community of stakeholders outside of it borders, said Mr John Anoku, Research Development Officer of ORID.

Justice Samual K.Date-Baah, chairman of UG Council said beyond publishing in peer review academic journals, publications like the research report fosters an enabling environment for engaging local and international stakeholders with creativity, discovery and new ways of doing things.

“It is my understanding that the first Report has had very positive feedback from both our internal and external stakeholders and I am very confident that this new report will be received very well tool”, he noted.

Last year the University Council increased financial resource allocation to support faculty research and participation in conferences to One Million Ghana Cedis.

This was to ensure many more faculty members have access to funds to enable them work on their research and contribute to the university’s research outputs.

This effort will be continued in a sustainable way to ensure an increase in the pool of funds for the university, he said.

Vice Chancellor of UG, Professor Ernest Aryeetey noted the launch of the second edition of the report was a clear evidence that the university's investment was paying off.

“I believe UG is now poised more than ever to take research to the next frontier. I therefore commend the efforts of all our researchers whose work we are showcasing in this report and the Office of Research Innovation and Development for once again compiling this excellent report”.

The recognition of University of Ghana’s Research accomplishments and potential was given a further boost when the University became a founding member of the newly formed African Research University Alliance (ARUA) at the just ended African Higher Education Summit in the Senegalese capital of Dakar.

“In addition to the one million cedis in support of faculty research and participation in conferences alluded to by the Chairman, we also allocated GH?1 million as a seed money for each of our four centres of excellence to kick-start cutting edge research in the thematic areas of malaria research; trans-disciplinary research into climate change adaptation; enhanced food production and processing; and development policy and poverty monitoring and evaluation.”

The UG he said intend to develop an area of research focus for our new College of Education within the next academic year.

“With the establishment of these research centres of excellence at UG, it is expected that our research capabilities and distinctive fields of expertise will be harness to address the key developmental issues of the country and the African continent while we expand the frontiers of knowledge” the VC said.

He said to make us competitive in the field of research in the sub-region the UG has began a process of refurbishing laboratories and replacing obsolete equipment, having spent $2.5 million in acquisition of equipment.