President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, will on Tuesday, January 19, open the 72nd Annual New Year School and Conference at the University of Ghana, Legon, Accra.

The School, which is scheduled for January 19-20, is being organised by the School of Continuing and Distance Education, College of Education, University of Ghana, on the theme, "Building Ghana in the Face of Global Health Crises".

Mr Godfried Kudzo Akpanya, the Coordinator/Prefect of the Annual New Year School and Conference, made this known on Monday in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra.

He said the Annual New Year School and Conference since its inception in 1948, had been the flagship programme of the University, which always opened at the beginning of the New Year and that it had never been truncated.

Mr Akpanya said due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which broke out in 2020, the 72nd Annual New Year School and Conference would focus on global health crises; adding that because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual weeklong programme had been shortened to two days.

He said participants would be drawn from all sectors of the economy - health, education, organised labour and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).

Mr Akpanya said the Annual New Year School and Conference, since its inception in 1948, had over the years played a crucial role in community development and capacity building.

He said the School, which had been held regularly since 1948, brought together people from all walks of life to deliberate on topical issues of national and international interest.

He noted that resolutions from the School were presented in a communique to relevant government and parastatal agencies; which had over the years played a key role in policy formulation.

Mr Akpanya, said a major challenge facing the organisation of the School was funding and appealed to cooperate institutions for support.

He also appealed to Government to resource the Secretariat of the Annual New Year School and Conference with a vehicle for its operations.