Universities must embrace AI without compromising academic integrity – Dr. Apaak

Deputy Minister for Education, Dr. Clement Abas Apaak, has urged Ghanaian universities to respond intelligently to the rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) while safeguarding academic integrity.

He said digital transformation and AI were already changing the way knowledge was produced, teaching was delivered, research was conducted and work was organised.

Dr. Apaak made the remarks on Thursday, September 3, 2026, during the investiture of Prof. Mohammed Muniru Iddrisu as the sixth Vice-Chancellor of the University for Development Studies (UDS).

“At the same time, universities must respond to digital transformation and the rapid emergence of artificial intelligence. These developments are changing how knowledge is produced, how teaching is delivered, how research is conducted and how work itself is organised,” he said.

He cautioned universities against either rejecting the technology outright or adopting it without proper safeguards.

“Our response must neither be fearful nor uncritical. We must develop the infrastructure, ethical standards and human capacity to use technology intelligently while protecting academic integrity,” Dr. Apaak stated.

The Deputy Minister also identified graduate unemployment and limited research funding among the major challenges confronting Ghana’s tertiary education sector.

“We must also confront graduate unemployment, limited research funding and the need for continuous staff development,” he said.

He stressed that expanding access to tertiary education must go hand in hand with maintaining academic standards.

“Expanding access to tertiary education remains necessary, but expansion must never become an excuse for declining academic standards. Access without quality offers only the appearance of progress,” he added.

Dr. Apaak further encouraged UDS to strengthen research in areas including agriculture, climate change, food security, public health, renewable energy, water management, peacebuilding, education and digital technology.

He said research should not remain confined to academic publications but should translate into practical solutions for national development.

“Research must travel beyond journals and conferences. It must enter Cabinet memoranda, district development plans, farms, clinics, classrooms, businesses and community meetings,” he said.
“A university does not fulfil its mandate merely by producing knowledge. It fulfils that mandate when knowledge improves lives.”

Dr. Apaak said UDS, given its development-oriented mandate, had a particular responsibility to connect academic knowledge with the needs of communities and the wider Ghanaian economy.