Private Universities in the country are experiencing high attrition rates, Professor Daniels Obeng-Ofori, the Vice President of the Catholic University of Ghana (CUG) has said. He expressed worry about the rate at which senior lecturers, especially those with PhDs were leaving and 'abandoning' private universities to other public institutions, due to poor condition of service. In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at the university's main campus at Fiapre in the Sunyani Municipality, Prof Obeng-Ofori said many of the private universities were struggling to improve the condition of service of lecturers to maintain them. 'The CUG is trying to increase basic salary by 20 percent and also enhance book and research allowances for lecturers to stay,' he stated, saying 'since we get money only from students, we need to get more students so that we can get more resources to improve their condition of service for them to stay'. 'Sometimes you employ somebody, sponsor him or her to get a PhD and they lea ve. That is a major challenge facing all the public universities in the country,' Prof Obeng-Ofori stated. Currently, Prof Obeng-Ofori said the CUG had 16 lecturers doing their PhD programmes and were on various stages of completion, saying, with the terminal degree, now, very soon without PhD 'you cannot teach in any tertiary institution'. 'We are also trying to make sure that lecturers are published, so that they can be promoted to senior lecturers and professors because we need senior lecturers and professors in the private universities, and you can do that only when you publish'. 'Now if we appoint you, within two years you must enroll in a PhD otherwise your appointment would be terminated,' the Vice Chancellor indicated. Prof Obeng-Ofori highlighted the immense and exceptional contributions of private universities towards the advancement of the nation's education and holistic development, and expressed the hope that private universities would do more to improve better conditions of service for lectur ers to stay. Established on May 3, 2003, and officially inaugurated by former President John Agyekum Kufuor in November, the university started to experience low student enrolment from 2014/2015/2016 academic years due to ferocious academic competition from both public and private universities. The CUG however came out with a robust strategic plan including a six-year (2019-2024) Corporate Strategic Plan meant to address strategic imperatives that the university needs to focus attention on to ensure not only its survival, but its unique contribution and identity within the institutions of higher education in the country. The university received a Presidential Charter in March 2022, granting it autonomy as an institution that can award its diplomas and degrees. This significant achievement allows CUG to operate independently, further solidifying its status as a reputable academic institution Currently, the CUG has seven faculties and schools, including faculty of economics and business administration, fac ulty of computing, mathematical and engineering sciences, faculty of education, school of nursing and midwifery, school of public health and allied sciences, faculty of religions and social sciences and school of graduate studies. Source: Ghana News Agency