The University of Ghana (UG) last Wednesday inaugurated its Ethics Committee for the Humanities (ECH) to oversee and regulate the ethical conduct of research within the disciplines in the humanities at the University of Ghana.
The committee is also to ensure that research activities are reviewed and ethical standards adhered to, as well as guaranteeing that research activities within UG are in compliance with all regulations.
Hitherto, the UG relied on the Ethical Committee of the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, but a committee for the Humanities and Social Sciences has become imminent, Professor John Gyapong, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Development (RID) said at the inauguration.
He said due diligence had been done to bring people of high repute to the committee, adding that, the committee was a multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral one with not more than 15 members.
According to him an odd number was crucial in the event of casting a vote.
He explained that members comprise of a medical/non-medical, scientific/nonscientific, including a lay legal expert, social scientist, philosopher, ethicist and a theologian.
Professor Ernest Aryeetey, the Vice-Chancellor of UG commended RID for the intervention saying a committee of such repute was long overdue.
He said the need for such a committee has become necessary because it had become a requirement for funding.
With research in the social sciences becoming evasive and data intensive, The UG Vice Chancellor noted that, issues of confidentiality among others were ethical and needed the expertise of a multidisciplinary committee to shape ethical principles and improve research.
A member of the committee, Rev. Agnes Phillips, with a communication background, expressed appreciation for the honour done them and noted that integrity was an endangered virtue and that they would devote time to execute their mandate.
Other members of the committee are Prof. C Charles Mate-Kole, a Psychologist of the Department Psychology, Dr Jemina Anderson, of the Department of English, Dr Joseph Asenso of the Finance Ministry and Rev. J. O. Y. Mante, President of the Trinity Theological Seminary.
The rest are Dr Akosua Darkwah of the Department Of Sociology, Dr Daniel Frimpong Ofori of the Business School, Prof. Felix Asante of ISSER and Dr Lawerence Boakye of the Department of the Study of Religions.
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