Higher education institutions and the United Nations’ sustainable development goals The University of Ghana experience

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

Abstract

The United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals have been widely acknowledged as crucial for the survival of humanity. Higher education institutions across the globe have engaged themselves in institutionalising these goals in their operational procedures and systems. The University of Ghana is no exception in this regard, and the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings for 2021 ranked UG’s overall performance at 71–77.4, an improvement on the 2020 performance which stood at 46.7–61.4. Although some have critiqued the methodological and contextual bases of these rankings, there is still a lot that is unknown especially with respect to the underlying factors behind the performance of universities in the Impact Rankings. More so, there are cultural and systemic differences at the individual university levels which are often missing in the global rankings. It is in considering the above that this chapter uses secondary data obtained from the University of Ghana and the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings. In addition, key informant interviews were conducted with selected officials from the University of Ghana to explore progress on the Sustainable Development Goals front, the underlying factors behind the performances as well as challenges encountered at the institutional level. The chapter observes that although significant progress has been made by the university in the Impact Rankings over the years, there is still quite a lot to be done, especially with respect to documentation of existing policies. A typical instance is the Affirmative Action Policy, which has been in operation for years, but the policy document is difficult to trace. The chapter concludes by recommending specific policies that will bring about gains to University of Ghana on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationSustainable Community Development in Ghana
PublisherTaylor and Francis
Pages63-75
Number of pages13
ISBN (Electronic)9781040030950
ISBN (Print)9781032431833
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2024

Keywords

  • Ghana
  • Higher Education Institutions
  • Impact Rankings
  • SDGs
  • University of Ghana

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