As part of their Students for Development Project, Wilfrid Laurier University, in Canada, has established a partnership with Ashesi University College. The partnership will allow the two universities to offer joint courses in Human Rights and Development. The ultimate goal of the project is to contribute to increased understanding and experience of human rights and good governance.
The partnership between the two universities grew out of the connections between Dr. Robert Ame, Assistant Professor at Wilfred Lauriel, and Professor Nana A. Apt, Dean of Academic Affairs at Ashesi. The two professors collaborated on a book examining Ghana’s implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and went a step further to explore other areas in which their universities could collaborate.
The Students for Development Project will engage students, through videoconference courses, in a dialogue juxtaposing the Ghanaian and Canadian perspectives on issues including Human Rights, Gender Equality and Food Security. Students and professors from both universities will therefore have a great opportunity to gain better understanding of Ghana’s development issues.
As part of this partnership, faculty at Wilfrid Laurier will work with faculty at Ashesi to develop Human Rights content for Ashesi that will become part of ongoing Ashesi classes. The programme also presents the opportunity for Canadian and Ghanaian students to make connections through their course interactions.