Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, Vice‑Chancellor of the University of Ghana, urged swift action to bring Ghana’s National Research Fund into operation during a roundtable hosted by the Ghana Students Association at Johns Hopkins University on 6 October 2026.
The Fund, established under the Ghana National Research Fund Act, 2020 (Act 1056), was intended to finance scientific research, technological advancement and innovation. Although a governing board was inaugurated in June 2025 and the Fund officially launched in June 2026, it remains non‑operational and has yet to provide the promised support to researchers.
Prof. Appiah Amfo highlighted that policy commitments must translate into tangible opportunities, noting that progress has been made but the remaining processes must be expedited to ensure researchers can access funding. She also pointed to the University of Ghana’s Graduate Research Fund, which offers grants to postgraduate students, and to research partnerships with organisations such as the Mastercard Foundation, Wellcome and the European Union.
Underlining the need for greater undergraduate engagement, the Vice‑Chancellor encouraged students to collaborate with faculty and seek research opportunities. She further called for stronger collaboration between Ghanaian scholars abroad and domestic institutions, urging professionals to apply their international experience to national development.
The roundtable, themed “From Global Opportunities to Local Impact: Building Networks, Careers, and Capacity Across the Ghanaian Diaspora,” brought together Ghanaian students, faculty, alumni and community members to discuss research financing, professional development and institutional collaboration.
Future discussions will focus on the steps required to operationalise the Fund and to broaden research participation across all university levels.
