The World Bank has selected three Centres of the University of Ghana for funding under the African Centres of Excellence (ACE) Impact project. ACE Impact is a continuation of the initial ACE (ACE I) project that was launched in 2014 by West and Central African countries with support from the World Bank and the Association of African Universities.
ACE Impact is focused on scaling up postgraduate education and applied research that are fundamental to economic growth in Africa.
The two existing ACEs of the University, the West African Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI) led by Professor Eric Danquah, and the West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP) led by Professor Gordon Awandare, will each receive $5.5 million.
A new ACE in the University named the West African Genetic Medicine Centre (WAGMC) led by Professor Solomon Ofori-Acquah will receive $6.4 million.
Universities with ACE Impact Centres are expected to meet global standards for quality of education, recruit students across the region and collaborate with other universities.
ACE Impact centers were selected after an open, rigorous and merit-based evaluation of 105 proposals that were submitted by higher education institutions from twelve participating countries. The President of the Republic of Djibouti officially launched ACE Impact project on the 20th of February at a ceremony in the Djibouti Palace Kempinski hotel in Djibouti City, Djibouti.
The opening ceremony was attended by the participating Centres, their Vice Chancellors and development partners. The University of Ghana was represented by a 17-member delegation from WACCI, WACCBIP, WAGMC and the Office of Research, Innovation and Development, led by Professor Danquah who represented the Vice Chancellor.