The Ghana Publishing Company Limited (GPCL), has partnered the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two state institutions.
Professor Kwasi Obiri-Danso and Mr. Andrews K. Boateng signed for KNUST and Mr. David Boateng Asante and Mrs. Elizabeth Ivy Quepson signed for the GPCL. The signing of the MoU was witnessed by members of management, faculty from the Faculty of Art, representatives from the GPCL, Ministry of Information and the State Enterprises Commission.
The concrete areas of collaboration were to jointly pursue printing and publishing contract and to share or collaborate in printing and publishing contracts where necessary.
The MoU will also offer internship opportunities, national service and job placements to KNUST students and graduates at GCPL.
Professor Kwasi Obiri-Danso hoped the partnership would enable both institutions train the needed manpower in the publishing industry to serve the needs of the country. He said a lot of KNUST alumni from the Publishing Department are staff of GPCL and it is not out of place that both state institutions are signing a formal agreement.
Managing Director of the GPCL, Mr. David Boateng Asante, said the GCPL with many years of experience and KNUST as the training institution in the industry, choice for partnership was obvious. He noted that the Department of publishing studies at KNUST is one of the few in West Africa. Therefore, partnership with the University is in furtherance to the decision to want to transform GPCL into a printing and publishing institution that is responsible for all government printing and publishing works.
Mr. Boateng Asante said they are anticipating Government may issue an executive instrument for all public printing to be executed by his outfit, there is the need therefore for technical expertise which calls for properly trained and skilled workforce and partnership with KNUST for capacity building.
Board Chairman of the GPCL, Dr. Daniel Owusu Ansah, said the collaboration resulted from their visit to the University a few months ago, which took them to the University Press and Faculty of Art. He said they realised that a collaboration would enable their staff gain expertise on modern machinery available at the University Press, KNUST (UPK) and also afford the GPCL staff to benefit from refresher courses.
Dr. Owusu Ansah stated that with the collaboration, they hope to be able to bid for contracts together as state institutions. He also announced that the GCPL is no more a printing house but a full publishing house and is available to meet the printing needs of the academic community.
Faculty Member at the Department of Publishing, Mr. Reuben Glover, said the publishing landscape is changing and therefore calls for renewal of knowledge, skills and competencies. The Faculty of Art in response to the changing needs of the publishing industry would soon introduce two new academic programmes to help students and practitioners in the industry improve their capacity.