The CEO of Telecel Ghana, Patricia Obo-Nai, has advocated for stronger collaboration between higher educational institutions and industry to prioritise the integration of industrial skills into academic curricula, asserting its relevance to nation-building.

She said the fast-changing global job market demands professionals skilled in tech skills and data science, stressing that the quality of human resources produced by our academic institutions will determine the competitiveness of our workforce.

Madam Obo-Nai was addressing the theme, ‘Inculcating Industrial Skills in Academia: Key to Nation Building,’ as the guest speaker at the 14th Matriculation and 16th Congregation of the Ghana Christian University College (GCUC).

“From my years of experience in industry, I dare say that the quality of human resources is the most critical. The quality of graduates we produce from our tertiary institutions will determine the quality of our future workforce.

"Industries and universities will need to develop structured work readiness programmes to serve as the vital bridge between the world of education and the workforce,” she added.

Madam Obo-Nai pointed out that the rapid pace of change in consumer needs and business sustainability calls for academia to stay ahead of industry trends to better prepare students for the workforce.

She shared a few key recommendations to help universities and students better align with industry needs, including revising curricula to include more industry input, partnering with industry for practical projects, and offering continuous opportunities for learning and knowledge exchange.

“Academia must be in touch with and, dare I say, ahead of industry to prepare a workforce that is fit for the future. Aside from the hard skills and knowledge you will acquire as students, one fundamental truth about the importance of education is the potential it gives us to transform knowledge into action,” she noted.

The ceremony, attended by members of the university’s Governing Council, Board of Trustees, university’s presidency, faculty, mentoring universities and guests, saw the successful matriculation of 356 fresh students and graduation of 186 students from the Faculty of Health Sciences and Faculty of Business Studies and Technology of GCUC.

Newly inducted president of GCUC, Rev. Dr. James Yamoah called for private sector support to improve the university’s infrastructure and realise their vision of training and churning out employable graduates.

“While our University College sees critical thinking as a necessity tool and therefore looking for any help that shall facilitate it so that our products will be able to compete favourably with their counterparts anywhere, we are also very much concerned about how our products will contribute to the efforts by the government and industries in building a robust economy that ensures employability and productivity with less or no graduate unemployment challenges,” Rev. Dr. Yamoah added.

GCUC’s Governing Council Chairman, Prof. Samuel K. Offei also added his voice to the call for external assistance from government and the private sector to improve the quality of holistic education the institution is delivering.

“We respectfully ask that you consider including Christian University College in your budgetary allocations for organisational assistance this year.

"Our urgent needs include expanding our infrastructure to accommodate more classrooms, administrative and faculty offices, a comprehensive library and skills laboratory, and student hostels to serve a growing student body.”

In her closing remarks, Madam Obo-Nai urged all graduates to uphold integrity in their professional lives and to remember that their academic journey at Ghana Christian University College was both for their success and the greater good of nation-building.

“To our graduates, I do not doubt that you are equipped with the academic knowledge to succeed, but remember, no textbook can fully prepare you for the workplace. Learn to be humble, never stop learning, and approach your job with the attitude of continually proving your value.”