Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, the Minister of Education, says the government will grant clearance to all public tertiary institutions in the coming months to enable them to recruit and replace critical staff. Dr Adutwum made the statement in an address read by Professor Yayra Dzakadzie, the Deputy Director of Ghana Education Tertiary Commission (GTEC), during the 24th Congregation of more than 1,500 graduates of the Ho Technical University (HTU). Three students graduated with a Master of Technology, 512 with a Bachelor of Technology, and 1,037 with a Higher National Diploma. Dr Adutwum announced that all projects being executed under the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) by the government would be completed in due course, reassuring the management of the Ho Technical University. The Minister said the government had paid some GHS 362,4 million as book and research allowances to eligible senior members of public tertiary institutions across the country. He said the government was consecrated to creating fair op portunities for staff members to advance in their careers, ensuring that educational institutions became self-sufficient in terms of human resources. Government acknowledged that financial challenges sometimes become an impediment for prospective students to pursue tertiary education and has gone further to roll out the 'No Guarantor Students Loan Policy' to allow tertiary students in both public and private institutions to access and secure loans by only providing their Ghana Card, he said. 'The good news is that the loan amount has been increased by 50 per cent and ranges between GHS1,500 and GHS3,000,' he added. Dr Adutwum said the Ministry of Education was committed to enabling all children to reach their full potential as valuable members of society by providing equitable, inclusive, and high-quality education and opportunities for lifelong learning. To this end, he said the government was determined to provide adequate funding for Technical Universities, creating an environment that fostered relevan ce to both national and international development through retooling, innovative, high-quality teaching and learning that is driven by ICT and research. He commended the University for providing students with the practical, hands-on experience they needed to succeed in the workforce while congratulating the graduates, for making a positive impact in their chosen fields and being valuable assets to nation-building. The Minister expressed appreciation to the Ho Technical University for its great work and reiterated his resolve to work together with management to achieve the government's vision for the sector. Professor Ben Honyenugah, the Vice Chancellor of HTU, mentioned some of the new programmes introduced as BSC Economics and Innovation, BTECH Biomedical Engineering, BTECH Real Estate and Facilities Management, and BTECH Architectural Technology. He said the University had also made investments in improving its academic resources, including infrastructure upgrades of classrooms and ICT labs. He appealed for a hotel school facility for the Hospitality Management Department to aid teaching and learning and called for the release of funds for the completion of GETFUND projects. Mr Francis Edem Kumado, a Higher National Diploma Fashion Design and Textiles student, was adjudged the overall best student and valedictorian with a 4.95 grade point average. Source: Ghana News Agency