The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi (KNUST) and Hohai University have held talks to expand their partnership into renewable energy, artificial intelligence, agriculture and business, building on academic cooperation established in 2010.
KNUST Registrar Benjamin Boampong Owusu and Hohai University Vice-President Prof. Wu Feng led their respective delegations at the meeting in Nanjing.
The discussions covered additional double-degree programmes, joint research laboratories, postgraduate training and exchanges for students, faculty and administrative staff.
“Looking ahead, we see enormous potential to expand our partnership beyond Civil Engineering and Harbour Engineering into areas such as water resources management, environmental sustainability, renewable energy, artificial intelligence, agriculture, materials science, business, and public administration and more,” Boampong said.
The partnership began following a visit to Hohai University by then KNUST Vice-Chancellor Kwasi Kwafo Adarkwa in 2010. It has since supported academic exchanges, staff development and postgraduate training.
“Our partnership dates back to 2010, when the then Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, Professor Adarkwa, visited Hohai University. This engagement marked an important milestone in our institutional relationship, particularly in staff development and academic training...” Mr. Owusu said.
Several KNUST staff members have received scholarships from Hohai to pursue master’s and doctoral degrees. Many scholarship recipients have subsequently joined KNUST’s faculty.
Hohai-trained academics associated with KNUST include former Pro Vice-Chancellor Prof. Samuel Nii Odai, Appiah-Adjei and Prof. Kwaku Amaning Adjei, who was part of the delegation.
The collaboration also includes 2+2 double bachelor’s degree programmes in civil engineering and harbour and coastal engineering, which began in 2023. The programmes have enrolled 60 students, of whom 32 have graduated. The third cohort arrived in China on Sept. 20, 2026.
“We are pleased with the progress of our double-degree programmes... We particularly appreciate the support of the KNUST Confucius Institute in providing the students with two months of Chinese language training before their departure,” Mr. Owusu said.
Prof. Wu said Hohai, whose teaching and research focus includes water resources, engineering, science, economics, management and law, valued its relationship with KNUST. He pledged to expand access to international hydrology training for Africans.
The universities also discussed opening ship and ocean engineering programmes to KNUST students and strengthening Chinese language training to broaden their academic opportunities at Hohai.
Other proposals included collaboration in business and management, joint laboratories to support technology and knowledge transfer, and opportunities to teach African history and heritage through a UNESCO-supported initiative involving KNUST.
UNESCO’s representative in Ghana, Edmond Moukala, who joined the KNUST delegation, described his return to Hohai 40 years after studying there and pledged UNESCO’s support for the institutions’ priority areas.
KNUST students studying at Hohai shared their experiences of academic and cultural exchanges with Chinese colleagues. They also highlighted the importance of Chinese language proficiency.
Both universities said they would work to translate the proposals into programmes.
