Prof. Ebenezer Oduro Owusu (right) being assisted by Daasebre Prof. Emeritus Oti Boateng and other dignitaries in turning the sod for the project
Vice Chancellor of
the University of Ghana (UG), Legon, Prof. Ebenezer Oduro Owusu, has turned sod
for the construction of a 4,660-bed Commonwealth Hall Annex.
Estimated at
US$42 million, the Old Vandals/KPMM project is expected to deliver a fully-furnished
4,660-bed facility, a 1,000-seater auditorium and a shopping mall.
The facility would
be made up of a 302 single-bed block, a 552 double-bed block and a 3,806
four-bed block.
It would also
have a 32 two-bedroom flat for lecturers and a sports centre.
Challenges
Addressing guests
and dignitaries at a brief ceremony on the forecourt of the hall in Legon,
Prof. Oduro Owusu stated that the provision of housing for students has posed a
great challenge to the university over the years, adding that the total housing
stock at the university’s traditional halls provides a total of 7,000-bed
spaces, which is just about 25 per cent of the entire students population.
He said that
while management had considered various approaches to improving the situation
and with efforts by the Student Representative Council (SRC) to reduce the
accommodation deficit, the project comes as an important step towards the
expansion of students’ accommodation on campus.
“Most importantly,
it comes at a time that the Junior Common Room (JCR) of the Commonwealth Hall
has petitioned the office of the President to address the accommodation crisis
on campus. On this score, I am sure the junior members of Commonwealth Hall are
happy to witness this event, and would accordingly revise their notes
especially with respect to their expectations from management,” he added.
Status
President of the
Old Vandals Association (OVA), Isaac Nketiah Sarpong, expressed his gratitude
to the university’s management and other stakeholders, hinting that the project
would raise the status of the hall among its peers on campus.
“We are going to
be moving from being the smallest among the traditional halls to being the
biggest. More importantly, we are going to move away from being the super
powers to being the ultra super power,” he mentioned.
Work On Existing Hall
Mr. Sarpong
recounted that early this year, the OVA launched an appeal to raise funds to
refurbish all the lavatories in the main hall and also to expand its water
supply system.
Work on this, he
assured, would start in the first quarter of next year.
Occasion
The sod turning
ceremony was held on Wednesday, November 6 at the Commonwealth Hall in Legon,
Accra.
In attendance were the 1st Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu; Paramount Chief for New Juabeng Traditional Area, Daasebre Prof. Emeritus Oti Boateng; Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency, Lydia Seyram Alhassan, veteran journalist Razak El Alawa, a number of other high-profile dignitaries, as well as old Vandals, lecturers and students of the university.
By Nii Adjei Mensahfio
