The University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) on Saturday held its third congregation for 855 graduands who received Bachelor’s degrees after four years of pursuing various academic programmes.

The number comprised 733 males, representing 83.7 per cent and 143 females that signified 15.3 per cent but 21 others for the first time in the history of the University also graduated from the School of Graduate Studies.

The post-graduates obtained Master of Philosophy (MPhil), Social Forestry and Environmental Governance, Master of Science (MSc) Environmental Engineering Management and MSc, Sustainable Energy Management degrees.

The institution currently operates five Schools-Natural Resources, Engineering, Science, Agriculture and Technology and Graduate Studies and runs 24 under-graduate programmes across all the Schools.

But again for the first time UENR graduated students in Petroleum Engineering, Fire and Disaster Management, Chemistry as well as Hospitality Management.

The UENR established by an Act of Parliament (Act 830) in 2011 and inaugurated on Saturday, November 17, 2012 with 154 pioneer students admitted in the 2012/2013 academic year to pursue programmes in two Schools-School of Engineering and School of Natural Resources now has a total student population of 5,057.

Professor Harrison Kwame Dapaah, the Vice-Chancellor (VC) announced in his report covering the activities of the institution during the 2017/2018 academic year at the ceremony attended by people of diverse backgrounds in Sunyani.

They included Mr. Yaw Osafo-Maafo, the Senior Minister, Dr Kofi Kodua Sarpong, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, parents and guardians, traditional rulers, educationists, scientists, technocrats and the media.

Prof. Dapaah reiterated that the University “aims at providing hands-on skill acquisition in science and technology driven disciplines to its students”.

In that regard, he indicated all level 300 students were mandated to undertake industrial attachment for a semester as part of their programme requirement, emphasising that the University had been receiving good reports from industry about the performance of students on the industrial attachment programmes.

The University therefore hoped to become an internationally competitive institution that would provide distinctive contributions to the society, specifically in the areas of energy and natural resources, the VC assured.

Prof. Dapaah mentioned a number of linkages and collaboration during the period under review, citing that UENR entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Global Change Research Institute of Czech Academy of Science, Czech Republic, to establish an International Greenhouse Gas and Global Climate Research Station.

That would enable the University to become a leading research institution in carbon fluxes and thereby contribute to the understanding of climate change on the ecosystem in Ghana and West-Africa in general, he added.

The VC disclosed the collaboration with the Czech Academy would bring to nine a total of such research centres in the world, with UENR’s one located at Mim in the Asunafo North Municipality of Brong-Ahafo Region, being the only one in Africa.

Earlier in an address, Prof. Ambrose Kwame Tuah, the Chair of the University Governing Council, suggested the need for government to ensure the availability of funds to adequately resource the various institutions like the Colleges of Education to be converted to University Colleges.

He said that was necessary to facilitate the provision of the required physical infrastructure, equipment and logistics because every institution of higher learning could operate efficiently for the expected results if those essentials were available. GNA