Higher Education Institution branding as a component of country branding in Ghana: Renaming Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology

As Higher Education Institutions (HEI) become more marketised and increasingly promotionalised, brand building gains in intensity and names become increasingly important. This conceptual paper plans to explore the application of the Renaming Process Model which depicts the key components that impact the organization brand renaming process, regarding the renaming of the African HEI Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). This work will not only apply the model to a service organization renaming, but will investigate it in terms of its relationship to nation branding regarding the potential to rebrand Africa such that its virtues would be widely communicated to the international community, to enhance the brand equity of the continent. Additionally, the individual African country's ability to create brand awareness, unique competitive identity and customer loyalty is crucial in today's competitive global environment, thus the role of renaming one of its most important and visible institutions will be explored.