GBC to establish university

The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), in its bid to improve training in broadcasting in Ghana, has announced plans to establish a broadcasting university.

In view of this, the corporation hinted that it would soon transform its existing engineering, radio and television training schools into a tertiary institution that would provide broadcasting professionals with a dedicated and specialized training that would sharpen their skills in the various broadcasting disciplines.

The Director General of GBC, Major (Rtd) Albert Don Chebe, disclosed this in an interview with journalists at the closing ceremony of the sixth intake of the broadcasting techniques course held at GBC.

Sixty-eight participants made up of 25 women and 43 men underwent the eight-week training course in broadcasting skills and general production.

Major (Rtd) Don Chebe said the corporation, in collaboration with an external partner, would hopefully launch the institution by September 2014 with accreditation from one of the established universities in the country.

He said the training school has been offering the programmes for a long time and therefore it decided to issue certificates that could be used outside GBC.

“We are going to re-organize these programmes to ensure that they are accredited so we can give out diplomas and certificates that will enable those, who have gone through this programme, to present them outside the walls of GBC,” he said.

The Director-General of GBC said the corporation had organized a series of training programmes and courses aimed at improving professionalism in broadcasting practice in Ghana.

GBC believes that management at a higher level calls for a wide and varied knowledge and skills outside the functional professional area and therefore such managers should be equipped with the basics to supervise the whole spectrum of functions in GBC, he said.

“In the new GBC that we seek to construct, no middle or senior manager will assume a senior position of responsibility without undertaking management training,” he noted.

Major (Rtd) Don Chebe said the migration to digital terrestrial television would “revamp our processes, transform our institutions and reform our programmes.”

He encouraged the participants to be true to the ethics of broadcasting and remember that their performance in the field would reflect on the image and reputation of GBC.

Joyce Anim-Ayeko, Head of the Training School, in her address, said the course outline included the core areas in broadcast industry, noting that participants had the chance to handle state-of-the-art broadcast equipment and work with some of the best in the industry.

“They are taught to be bold and ambitious and learn all they can at the feet of the experts before launching themselves.

For this reason, all participants are required to do practical attachment in any of GBC’s stations nationwide,” she said.

The assessment for course has been good and a critical look will be taken at areas where there were perceived shortfalls, Ms. Anim-Ayeko said.


Source: Daily Guide