Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience |  University of Cape Coast

ACECoR Team from the University of Cape Coast Participates in 3rd ACE Impact Workshop in Abuja, Nigeria

A six-member delegation from the Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience (ACECoR) of the University of Cape Coast participated in the third ACE Impact Workshop in Abuja, Nigeria from February 24 -28, 2020. This workshop is the third in a series of biannual workshops organized by the World Bank, coordinated by the Association of African Universities (AAU) and supported by the Government of Nigeria, National Universities Commission (NUC) in Nigeria. A total of forty-six (46) Centres of Excellence hosted in twelve (12) countries across Africa (Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Guinea, Cote D’Ivoire, Togo, Cameroon, Djibouti, Senegal, and Niger) participated in the workshop.

The University of Cape Coast is set to receive a result-based funding to the tune of US$ 6.4 million from the World Bank through the Government of Ghana, having fulfilled the basic requirements to achieve effectiveness for ACECoR. The project implementation period spans from 2019 to 2023. The Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, Prof. Dora F. Edu-Buandoh, representing the Vice-Chancellor, together with the Centre Director, Prof. Denis W. Aheto; Deputy Centre Director, Dr. Precious A. Mattah; the Director of Finance, Mrs. Elizabeth Obese; the Procurement Officer, Mr. Nicholas Ampofo and the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Mr. Joshua Adotey formed the UCC team for the Workshop.

This biannual workshop saw the participation of stakeholders of the higher education sector, including, Ministers of Higher Education, Vice Chancellors and academics from host institutions, government representatives from the participating countries, the private sector, industry players and policy think tanks. The objective of the Abuja Conference was to create an avenue for participating centres, including ACECoR, to gain knowledge relevant to the implementation of the project, exchange ideas, build networks and forge partnerships to ensure the successful implementation and realization of the project’s objectives.

Key areas of discussions were:

• Providing opportunities for the  Centres to share best practices on higher education and relevance
• Taking stock of status of progress towards achieving project effectiveness for each country and institution
• Approving implementation plans for Centres
• Providing guidance on requirement of first disbursement, fiduciary and safeguard matters
• Providing networking and collaboration for Centres
• Designing and implementing specific milestones for institutional impact
• Planning key next steps for each country and institution in achieving milestones.

Hon. Mallam Adamu Adamu, Minister of Education, Nigeria formally launched the workshop at the Sheraton, Abuja Hotel.