Dr. Simon-Peter Kafui Aheto, a Senior Lecturer of Information Technology and Education at the Department of Distance Education, School of Continuing and Distance Education, College of Education has been appointed as the first College International Programmes Coordinator (CIPC) of the College of Education by the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo. Dr. Aheto has been appointed to serve on this position for a three-year term. The Office of the CIPC is an initiative by the University to bring internationalisation to the doorstep of every College. It will be recalled that the University Council approved the Internationalisation Strategy last academic year. Consequently, the set-up of the Office of the CIPC is one of the innovations and implementations in the Internationalisation Strategy of the University.
As part of his duties, Dr. Aheto is expected to serve as a member of the Management Committee of the International Programmes Office (IPO) at the University of Ghana and to support the Provost and College Secretary in setting standards and ensuring effective global engagement to promote the internationalisation reputation of the College. His Office will also work with the Dean of International Programmes and his Office (IPO) in other aspects of the University’s external relations and activities which include student recruitment, admissions, marketing, communications and alumni relations and the development at the College. In summary, Dr Aheto’s new role requires that he coordinates the development and implementation of the College’s Internationalisation Strategy in line with the University of Ghana Internationalisation Strategy. He hopes to develop, implement and lead an all-inclusive internationalisation strategy for the College that will be owned by all of its members.
Dr. Aheto has distinguished himself in various capacities at the College and the University. Currently he serves as a member of the University of Ghana Academic Board, College of Education Academic Board and the Information Technology Management Board. Also, he is the Chairman for the College’s Communication, Information and Marketing and Image Enhancement Team. Prior to the new role, he was the Coordinator for Course Delivery Unit at the Department of Distance Education.
Dr. Aheto continues to play a very significant role in the University’s flagship and historical programme, the Annual New Year School and Conference under the auspices of the School of Continuing and Distance Education and the College of Education. He has successfully played a leading role in co-directing the 73rd and then directing the 74th and 75th Annual New Year School and Conference.
Dr. Simon-Peter Kafui Aheto, the Information Technologist and Educational Technologist who is well versed in open, flexible, distance, online and social networked learning has consulted widely in these areas. He is locally and internationally networked and holds some key qualities such as facilitation, organisational and people skills that will positively be of much significance as he assumes this role. He has consulted for respectable organisations including UNESCO, Oxfam/WiLDAF, the National Youth Authority of Ghana, Lagos State Government, Never Again Rwanda in Kigali, the National Research Fund of South Africa; African Union Youth Division and Commonwealth Secretariat Youth Division and BMZ (Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development) of Germany.
Dr. Aheto has also won several renowned awards and scholarships from reputable bodies such as the Carnegie-Mellon, University of Cape Town Scholarship; Erasmus Mundus plus (University of Freiburg), Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), Cape Peninsula University of Technology scholarship awards in research and as a visiting scholar at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium and the BMZ award for exchange programmes.
Dr. Aheto serves as an external examiner for PhD and Masters theses for universities such as the University of Cape Town (UCT), University of South Africa (Unisa), Durban University of Technology (DUT) and Cape Peninsula University of Technology. There is no doubt that Dr. Aheto has the capacity to deliver on his mandate to make the College of Education a reference address for internationalisation in higher education at the University of Ghana.
Dr. Simon-Peter Kafui Aheto, the College of Education is proud of you and congratulates you on this achievement. We wish you the very best in this new endeavour.