Graduate students highlight innovations for industrial growth

The 6^th Annual Research Conference of the Graduate Students Association of Ghana (GRASAG)-KNUST focused on the role of innovations in science and technology for the survival of local industries.

President of GRASAG-KNUST, Etuaful Rashid Kwesi, believes industries that survive generations will mostly emerge out of research, hence the need for government to invest in graduate education to successfully lead an economy built on innovation.

“This targeted investment must seek to boost sufficiency in energy generation and distribution, which the Association of Ghana Industries asseverates, is the bane of the sector presently”, he said.

The graduate students expect Ghanaian researchers to be better placed to be technology leaders and to collaborate with industry stakeholders in exploring and exploiting new knowledge.

This, they believe, requires continuous and stable investment in research and a transformation of science and technology capacity to achieve increased number of scientists, social scientists, engineers and technologists.

The challenge Ghana faces, according to the Association, is how best to exploit industry and university research development and innovation.

“Industry and university research commercialization is significant and important as it impacts on societies and citizens. Society ultimately is the beneficiary when ideas from universities translate into products or services in critical areas such as health, environment and security”, stated Kwesi Twum Antwi-Agyakwa, a member of the GRASAG Research Committee.

The research conference was on the theme: “Leading Innovations through Graduate Research”. It gives room for many postgraduate students to present some brilliant ideas emanating from their studies and serves as a platform for industry to tap into opportunities in the ideas.

Abstracts of research activities in KNUST and other sister universities provided a focal point for the sharing of research developments.

 

Some awards were presented to outstanding research projects.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh