As part of efforts to bridge the industry-academia gap, the Takoradi Technical University has engaged the global engineering company, Siemens to explore collaborations in the areas of technology transfer, equipment and virtual learning.

The engagement, which would be sealed with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) by the end of this month, would enable the two institutions to address critical labour needs to successfully integrate students of the University into the world of work.

Mr Edmund Acheampong, the Country Manager of Siemens, said the company’s vision was to equip and expose lecturers and students in the sub-Saharan African countries in varied industrial technologies to make them experts and employable in any field that they may find themselves.

He revealed that the decision to hold talks with TTU was to ensure that young Africans were impacted with the requisite knowledge and technologies to support the socio-economic development of the Continent.

Mr Acheampong was optimistic that the collaboration would bridge the gap between academia and industry by addressing the inefficiencies in infrastructural resources to deliver cutting-edge manpower capable of meeting the target of the industry.

Rev. Prof. John Frank Eshun, the Vice Chancellor of TTU, said the ultimate goal of the University was to train market ready students who would not need any further training by industry.

“Our product must be able to stand the test of time and compete with any graduate from other institutions across the globe,” he said.

The Vice Chancellor said the University was ready to partner any institution with the right certification and technology to help deliver quality teaching and learning.

He said the challenges facing the University included inadequate modern equipment to promote effective teaching and learning.

He, therefore, expressed optimism that the collaboration with Siemens would help address some of the challenges with respect to technology and equipment.