Asantehene calls on churches to address students' accommodation problem

Kumasi, Aug 13, GNA - Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene, has urged churches to complement government efforts at providing adequate accommodation for students in the country's universities. He said this would help the country to overcome the perennial accommodation problem facing students, especially those gaining admission to the universities.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu made the call in a speech read on his behalf at a sod-cutting ceremony for the construction of an Anglican hostel at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi on Saturday.

The hostel, which is expected to accommodate 400 students on completion, is estimated to cost 12 billion cedis.

The project is being undertaken by the Anglican Diocese of Kumasi and forms part of a number of accommodation facilities lined up by the church with a goal of housing about 1,500 students in the near future. While commending the Anglican Church for initiating the project, The Asantehene called on members to resolve to donate in cash and kind towards the successful completion of the hostel.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu, who was recently invested as the chancellor of KNUST, bemoaned what he said was the lack of enough resources at the university's disposal to provide adequate accommodation for students. He said this had created a situation where about half of students who gained admission to the university are forced to stay outside the campus, adding that this development was making students vulnerable. The Right-Reverend Daniel Yinkah Sarfo, Anglican Bishop of Kumasi, stated that the church was liasing with financiers for a loan to carry out development projects to enhance the physical well being of members.