The long-standing collaboration between Leipzig University and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana, has received exceptional recognition: Dr. Ralph Nyadu-Addo, Senior Lecturer at KNUST’s Department of Publishing Studies, has been awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany by Federal President Frank Walter Steinmeier.
Photo Credit: SEPT
The award honours his outstanding contributions to German-Ghanaian academic cooperation, innovation promotion, and entrepreneurship development.
Strong academic ties with Leipzig University
For more than two decades, Dr. Nyadu-Addo has been a key figure in establishing and maintaining partnerships between KNUST and several German institutions – especially Leipzig University and Prof. Dr. Utz Dornberger at the Faculty of Economics and Management Science. His cooperation with the International SEPT Competence Center has played a decisive role in shaping successful initiatives that strengthen innovation capacity and employability across Africa.
A central outcome of this partnership is the African Centre for Career Enhancement and Skills Support (ACCESS), coordinated by Leipzig University and funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). As KNUST’s lead representative, Dr. Nyadu-Addo has contributed significantly to the implementation of ACCESS and its successor project, ACCESS 2.0, helping to make KNUST a continental hub for career enhancement and entrepreneurship education.
Shared commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship
Beyond ACCESS, he has been closely involved in other Leipzig-based initiatives such as the Intelligence for Innovation (iN4iN) network and the African German Entrepreneurship Academy (AGEA), both coordinated under the leadership of Prof. Dornberger at the SEPT Competence Center.
“Dr. Nyadu-Addo has been an indispensable partner and bridge-builder between Leipzig and Ghana for many years,” said Prof. Dornberger. “His dedication and vision have made a lasting contribution to international academic cooperation and to promoting innovation ecosystems across Africa.”
With the Order of Merit, Dr. Nyadu-Addo joins a distinguished group of individuals whose achievements have strengthened Germany’s global partnerships through academic diplomacy and sustainable development.
Source: Leipzig University / SEPT Competence Center