“The government’s current vision for the Kwadaso College of Agriculture is to develop the institution into an agricultural university with the cooperative support of the renowned Mendel University of the Czech Republic.
“And here, in our midst, I would like to acknowledge the presence on this occasion of our compatriot, Professor Samuel Darkwa, a lecturer and representative of Mendel University. Professor, I have been informed of your tireless efforts to bring about the desired transformation of Kwadaso College, for which we are grateful.”
Such were the words of the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on Friday, September 30, 2022, at the centenary celebrations of the Kwadaso Agricultural College in Kwadaso in the Ashanti Region.
After Kwadaso College was founded in 1922 to help maintain the then Gold Coast’s enviable position as the world’s leading cocoa producer, the President noted that the College has since evolved into a center of excellence with expanded educational capabilities.
According to President Akufo-Addo, “To date, the Agricultural College of Kwadaso can boast of having trained approximately one hundred thousand (100,000) young people as Agricultural Assistants who have since been taken on by the Department of Food and Agriculture of the Local Government Service, Ghana Cocoa Board, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the private sector over the years.”
Having produced a significant body of graduates who have risen to leadership positions in industry, academia, civil society and entrepreneurship, he stated that “the college’s performance in developing the human resources of this country is a testament to its strength.” .
One hundred (100) years after the founding of the College, the President declared that the time was right to reposition the institution to realize its full potential and therefore the decision was made to develop Kwadaso Agricultural College into an Agricultural University. with the cooperative support of the renowned Mendel University of the Czech Republic.
“As I understand it, the Agricultural University will take care of the academic and professional development of our human resources for the agricultural sector. If successful, the plan will include setting up outdoor campuses in Ejura and Wenchi Agricultural Colleges,” he said.
The President continued, “The reason I am very excited about the establishment of this university dedicated to agriculture is that we will generate the necessary number of human resources to support research, impart knowledge and be a leader in this sector. “
President Akufo-Addo stressed the need for the country to deliberately increase the number of middle-level professionals providing hands-on support in the sector, acknowledging that the Kwadaso College of Agriculture, and indeed other colleges, are already laying the groundwork for the development of such a category of human resources, as some graduates of these institutions have begun to benefit from training in the government’s greenhouse internship program in Ghana and Israel.
“The trainees in such centers are prepared for entrepreneurship by equipping them with academic knowledge and practical skills in greenhouse technology. Once established, the transformed agricultural university and other colleges will serve as incubators for the development of more agricultural skills in the country,” he said.
The President therefore pledged the government’s continued support to make the college’s expansion into a university a reality, and tasked the Department of Food and Agriculture with increasing efforts and strengthening the partnership and collaboration with Mendel University to realize this vision .
“The collaboration between the Department of Food and Agriculture and Mendel University illustrates the wisdom of working together to make our institutions very valuable to our development efforts. I am confident that this celebration will spark that spirit of togetherness and make it a reality,” he added.
