Speaking during the brief inauguration ceremony, the Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone Ghana, Patricia Obo-Nai, acknowledged Professor Rita Akosua Dickson, the Vice Chancellor of KNUST, and Professor Mark Adom-Asamoah, the Provost of the College of Engineering, for their leadership and support for the project.

“For such projects, you need a team to collaborate with you, and Vodafone Ghana has enjoyed a rewarding partnership under their leadership. I am grateful for that,” she said.

Speaking on the project, Patricia said, “We must contribute our lot to the education of our youth and the future of this country. And there is no better way to do it than to use some of the digital tools and strengths that we have as a technology company. And therefore, we brought this service to the campus for the university’s benefit.”

She added that the project was part of Vodafone Ghana’s “Connected Education” service. This service includes mobile services that let students and school administrators work together through discounted mobile data, free calls, access to online resources, and wide area network solutions with dedicated internet.

Under Connected Education, Vodafone can also provide managed Wi-Fi and unified communication services and enable a cashless campus through Vodafone Cash.

Patricia expressed her hope that the project would be a model that would inspire other universities. “I’m happy to see all the infrastructure that has been set up here, and I ask that the students value the effort that has been put in and put it to good use.”

The Vice Chancellor of KNUST expressed her thanks to Vodafone Ghana, saying, “In our noble agenda of training ethical and transformative leaders, we have always believed in enduring and constructive partnerships. COVID-19 showed us how important it is for us to have universities without walls. Therefore, we put a premium on this gesture from Vodafone and we thank you.”

She asked other groups and institutions to follow Vodafone Ghana’s example and support the university’s digitisation agenda.