On Wednesday, May 7, 2025, Professor Patrick F. Mensah, Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at Southern University, Agricultural and Mechanical College, Baton Rouge, USA, paid a courtesy call on Professor Daniel Y. A. Duah, Dean of the International Programmes Office (IPO) at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).
Professor Mensah's visit to KNUST is part of a collaborative research initiative with Dr. Patrick Boakye, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Research Lead at the Brew-Hammond Energy Centre. This collaboration is under the auspices of the Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship Programme (CADFP), which aims to foster partnerships between African institutions and diaspora scholars in the United States and Canada.
During the meeting, Professor Mensah elaborated on the objectives of the CADFP, emphasizing its role in supporting projects that encompass research collaboration, curriculum development, and graduate student mentoring. He highlighted his previous engagement with Ashesi University, where he contributed to establishing their engineering programme through the same fellowship. Reflecting on his interactions with KNUST, Professor Mensah commended the university for producing exceptional graduates, noting that he has had the privilege of teaching several KNUST alumni during their postgraduate studies.
Dr. Boakye provided insights into their ongoing collaborative projects, including a study utilizing NASA satellite data to analyze cloud microphysics in aerosol pollution modeling. He emphasized that this research serves as a foundation for broader collaborations, particularly in the field of hydrogen research. Dr. Boakye also mentioned plans to acquire an engineering simulation tool for computational fluid dynamics, a resource currently unavailable at KNUST, which would significantly enhance the university's research capabilities.
Professor Daniel Duah warmly welcomed Professor Mensah and acknowledged his exemplary contributions to academia. He reiterated KNUST's commitment to fostering global partnerships that provide students with diverse academic exposures and equip them to address global challenges. Professor Duah expressed optimism that the ongoing collaboration would yield significant academic and research outcomes, further strengthening the ties between KNUST and Southern University.
Also present at the meeting were Dr. Prince Junior Asilevi, Lecturer in the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science; Ms. Lydia Korley, an MPhil student in the same department; Ms. Ernestine Oheneba Danso, Collaborations and Partnerships Officer; and Mr. Attah-Nyame Essampong, Visibility and Communications Officer, both from the IPO.
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