GEPA meets tertiary institutions on ECOWAS Market Penetration

Accra, Aug. 31, GNA – The Ghana Export
Promotion Authority (GEPA) has held a meeting with Ghanaian tertiary
institutions in line with the Authority’s broader strategies of improving
export returns in the education services sector.

The event, which brought together nine (09)
higher institutions of learning and a representative from the National Council
for Tertiary Education (NCTE), was strategized to see how to boost earnings
through increased foreign students’ enrolment in Ghana’s tertiary institutions.

Participants at the meeting looked at the
modalities and the strategies aimed at augmenting the gains made in the
sub-regional market as well as increasing the number of foreign students in
both the private and the public universities.

In his remarks, the Deputy CEO of GEPA, Mr
Albert Kassim Diwura, who represented the CEO, Ms Afua Asabea Asare, stated
that, “As part of strategies aimed at placing Ghana beyond aid, we are
leveraging our strengths in the sub-region to achieve higher revenue returns
for our country.”

He said the education sector held the
potential to generate the needed Foreign Exchange for the country.

Acting Director for Services, Manufactures and
Petrochemicals at GEPA, Mr Abdallah Z.K. Banda, said in line with GEPA’s core
mandate of developing and promoting goods and services, the promotion of
tertiary education in the sub-regional market and beyond, is part of its
strategic objective.

The gathering generally agreed that GEPA’s
initiative was laudable and forward looking, as it seeks to assist the schools
in their recruitment drive.

Participants urged GEPA to look beyond the
Nigerian market and equally target the francophone markets and other African
markets through the deployment of the appropriate trade promotion strategies.

It was also agreed that foreign students in
Ghana should be given the best customer care so that they (students) served as
good ambassadors to the Ghanaian brand.

There was also a discussion on the collation
and integration of foreign students’ data into the Non Traditional Export (NTE)
Data system. The consensus, however, was that the NCTE holds the relevant
information needed by the GEPA to commence the process of data acquisition and
eventual integration, albeit with additional work and consultation with the
relevant schools.

The schools assured GEPA of their commitment
to the Authority’s strategic direction, and that any support needed by GEPA to
move forward in the education service sector would be provided.

The participating schools were Ashesi
University, Ghana Technology University College (GTUC), Central University,
Regional Maritime University (RMU), and University of Professional Studies
(UPS).

Others are Kumasi Technical University, Kwame
Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), University of Cape Coast
(UCC), University of Ghana (UG) and the National Council for Tertiary Education
(NCTE).

GNA

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