Kofi Annan Was Here

Ghana's hopes for an Olympic medal were dashed the other day as its last Cuban-trained boxer was defeated. The nation and this very university had another shot at the international news cycle this week as none other than former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, was installed as the University Chancellor. The ceremony was attended by the President of Ghana, John Kuofor. Although I did not get the chance to give Chancellor Annan my new cell phone number or invite him back to my room for some water and reading, another Ambassadorial Scholar and I did make our way up to the Great Hall where the ceremony was taking place (picture included). There we saw the new chancellor and assembled dignitaries from a tv screen outside the building.

Secretary Annan adds to the University of Ghana's already growing profile. I don't have enough information to comment authoritatively on the state of tertiary education in West Africa, but I think I'm safe in saying that the options and access of residents are limited. Nevertheless, I said Legon (another name for the university after the wealthy suburb of Accra in which it's located) is on the rise. I received some insight into this fact when I was unexpectedly roped into an orientation session for freshmen. The University of Ghana's enrollment as of the 92/93 school year was about 2,000 students. By 97/98 enrollment had jumped to about 9,000. Incredibly, over the next decade, that figure tripled to the current student population of over 27,000. This at least in part accounts for the flurry of construction taking place all over the campus.