HISTORY OF UDS

Established in May 1992 by the Government of Ghana to " blend the academic world with that of the community in order to provide constructive interaction between the two for the total development of Northern Ghana, in particular, and the country as a whole" (PNDC Law 279, section 279)

"The UDS was borne out of the new thinking in higher education which emphasizes the need for universities to play a more active role in addressing problems of the society, particularly in the rural areas" (Effah, 1998)

The University by its mandate and constituency has a pro-poor focus. This is reflected in its methodology of teaching, research and outreach services. The specific emphasis on practically-oriented, research and field-based training is aimed at contributing towards poverty reduction in order to accelerate national development.

It begun academic work in September 1993 with the admission of forty(40) students into the faculty of Agriculture, (FoA), Nyankpala.

The Faculty of Integrated Development Studies (FIDS), Faculty of Education (FoE), Faculty of Planning and Land Management (FPLM), School of Business and Law, School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources (FRNR), Faculty of Agriculture (FoA), Faculty of Agribusiness and Communication Sciences (FACS), Faculty of Applied Sciences (FAS), Faculty of Mathematical Sciences (FMS), Navrongo and the graduate school now in Tamale were phased in from 1994 to date.

In 2012, UDS celebrated twenty (20) years of delivering academic excellence under the theme “UDS: 20 years of Community Development through Higher Education”. The highlights of the celebration included a medical outreach that covered selected communities within the University’s catchment area; a quiz competition; the first edition of the Africa leadership Lectures; Alumni Homecoming and a Dinner and Awards Night, held to honor deserving staff and development

UDS is unique compared to other public universities  in the following ways:

• Its location and multi campuses are spread out in rural northern Ghana where the incidence and depth of poverty is high.
• Its vision is pro-poor aimed at addressing the conditions and structural causes of poverty.
• UDS has four campuses, eight faculties, a business school, one Medical School, one Graduate School, one Institute and three centres.
• UDS also runs a community-technical interface programme. This is a combination of the academic and community-based field practical work known as the Third Trimester Field Programme [TTFPP].

VISION

The University is envisaged to be a Home of World Class Pro-Poor Scholarship. This is reflected in its motto: '' Knowledge for Service'' as well as its methodology of teaching, research and outreach programmes.

MISSION

UDS seeks to achieve its vision by:

1. Promoting equitable and socio-economic transformation of communities through practically oriented, community based, problem solving, gender sensitivity and interactive research, teaching, learning and outreach activities.
2. Providing higher education to persons suitably qualified for and capable of benefiting from it.
3. Positioning itself as a national asset in the facilitation of lifelong learning.

1. Developing its information and communication technology infrastructure as the driving force for the education of more people, more rapidly and the improvement of efficiency and academic quality in order to advance community and national development.

INCOMING STUDENTS LOOKING FOR ACCOMMODATION AT THE UNIVERSITY FOR DEVELOPMENT STUDIES SHOULD CONTACT THE STUDENT ACTIVIST
+233249930641 
+233204615869
+233240989633
ketualex@outlook.com