Centre for International Affairs building contract to be re-awarded

Accra (Greater Accra) 13 July 2002- The contract for the building project for the Legon Centre for International Affairs (LECIA) at the University of Ghana is to be re-awarded due to the inability of the contractor, Eunitacks to access the funds the government provided for its completion 18 months ago. The project to be comprised of offices, seminar halls, classrooms, a library and computer room, started three years ago at an estimated cost of 2.6 billion cedis.

LECIA, for past 10 years has been training people of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other officials to assist the government to develop and implement its foreign policies. Professor Kofi Kumado, Director of the Centre on Thursday made this known when a 20-member Parliamentary Select Committee on Foreign Affairs visited the project site to inspect work done so far and also to acquaint itself with the centres programmes.

Prof. Kumado noted that the late completion of the building had crippled the Centre's ability to commit funds into expanding its course programmes, to admit more students and to employ more technical staff because their current place of location at the School of Administration was too small. He said; 'LECIA has not been able to develop fully as the founding fathers intended it to be due to its lack of space, therefore, its full potential of training personnel of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is yet to be realised.'

According to him Eunitacks, whose contract has been terminated, would be made to pay for any additional cost that would be incurred by the new contractor. He said currently about 1.5 billion cedis had been spent on the project, but the job done was still not up to three-quarters completion adding, 'we hope to finish the physical structure in mid next year when the Regional Tender Board awards the contract to a new contractor and then the second phase, its furnishing."

Professor Kumado announced that, the Centre was in the process of hosting a continental programme in Accra soon, with the support of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. He said the Centre also hoped to come out with a journal on international affairs soon adding that 'it is also considering the formation of an effective alumni to help make its dream of establishing a sounding board for Ghana's foreign policies a reality.

The Director said the Centre would collaborate with the committee by fashioning out programmes to benefits Members of Parliament. Dr Yaw Brimpong-Yeboah, Chairman of the Committee and Member of Parliament for Atiwa in the Eastern Region said the visit was to find out why the project was stop half way and see what must be done to speed up its completion.

He said the Committee was much interested in the early completion of the project owing to its importance in training officials of the ministry. Dr Brimpong-Yeboah said, the Committee to appreciate the work the Centre had done over the years and called for frequent interaction between the Committee and the Centre in their programmes.