The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) is to support research and other related activities at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS) with the setting up of an endowment fund.
The fund has a seed capital of GH¢100,000 and a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed to signify the setting up of the fund.
The Board Chairman of the GSE, Dr Sam Mensah, signed on behalf of the GSE while the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Professor Ernest Aryeetey, signed on behalf of the UGBS.
Essence of the fund
In an interview after signing the MoU, Dr Mensah said the essence of setting up the fund was to deepen the relationship between the GSE, which is a private entity, and the UGBS.
“Deepening the relationship requires continuous engagements, and maintaining the engagement means you have to provide the resources required to do this. It is an endowment fund, which means it will be invested to provide returns, and the GSE will also make annual contributions to the fund, subject to the approval of the Board,” he said.
Dr Mensah explained that the fund would enable the Business School to carry out researches that would help provide new ideas for developing not only the stock exchange but the whole financial landscape in Ghana.
“Research requires money, and we believe the fund would go a long way to help the university do this. It will also be a source of support for students to carry out research,” he said.
Industry and academia
Prof. Aryeetey said the event indicated how industry and academia could work together for mutual benefit.
“We see today’s event as an example of how industry and academia can work together. The MoU that has been signed will be used to do a number of things, including support for research and collaboration in graduate training, with the two institutions working together on the themes that are relevant to both of them,” he said.
Professor Aryeetey reiterated the need for industry and academia to work closely and stressed that the university was working to achieving that goal.
“We need to work a bit more closely with industry, whether it is manufacturing, banking, agriculture and energy, there is a lot more that can be done. We are taking the first step of reaching out to industry,” he said.
“We are not just looking for money but we are looking for opportunities to do things that are of benefit to both parties. Today, you hear of a lot of firms talking about capacity challenges and you hear universities also talking about wanting to support but we need resources to do that,” he said.
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