KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY HON. Dr.SHUKURU JUMANNE KAWAMBWA(MP), THE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION AND VOCATIONAL TRAINING ON THE OCCASION OF THE FOURTH GRADUATION CEREMONY AT ST.JOSEPH COLLEGE OF INFORMATI TECHNOLOGY (SJUIT), SONGEA ON 9TH SEPTEMBER 2013.
| KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY HON. Dr.SHUKURU JUMANNE KAWAMBWA(MP) | | |
Hon. Said Thabiti Mwambungu, Regional Commissioner of Ruvuma;
Dr.T.X.A. Ananth, President of the University Council,
SJUIT Members of the St. Joseph University Council and Senate;
Members of College Advisory Board, St. Joseph College of Information Technology, SJCIT; Sisters, Staff and Students, Parents herepresent;
Distinguished invited guests;
The media;
ladies and gentlemen;
Rev. Chancellor,
It is an honor for me to join the Rev. Chancellor, graduands and parents to celebrate this very special day for all graduating students and for the University. Seeing the graduates here this morning is a proud moment for many of us in different ways. It is a happy occasion for the graduates because they are being rewarded for the completion of their studies; it is a proud moment for the parents and guardians because their dreams of giving their sons and daughters education has finally come to fruition; and it is an achievement for the University because it has been successful in providing higher education to students of Ruvuma and the country who will now step forward in life to build their respective careers.
Rev. Chancellor, Graduands, Ladies and Gentlemen
I congratulate the University for releasing into the labour market, the many graduands gathered here today. I note with gratification that the graduands have pursued courses in key areas central to our country’s national development priorities and particularly in key skills shortage areas such as Engineering and ICT...
Daughters of Mary Immaculate (DMI)
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am informed that Daughters of Mary Immaculate (DMI) was founded in the year 1984 in a small village in Chennai by the visionary Rev.Fr.Dr.J.E. Arul Raj. Run by women, DMI is inspired by the Christian Biblical virtues and devotion, which spearheaded the team to accomplish service to the most disadvantaged persons by undertaking several charity and development activities and services in villages in remote areas. I am aware that DMI established a College of Engineering in Dar es Salaam in year 2004 and expanded to three campus colleges in Songea, Makambako and Arusha. I congratulate Daughters of Immaculate Mary for such an impressive achievement in a relatively short span of 9 years. Ladies and Gentlemen,
I commend the role played by DMI in nurturing Tanzanian student community by providing facilities in higher education, creating employment opportunities through linkages to industries in several East African countries like Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi and Ethiopia. I also appreciate your enthusiasm in serving priority fields of study of Agriculture, Engineering, Computer Science, and Education. In particular, I appreciate and congratulate you for setting your mark in Engineering and Technology education in our country. Five Years Development Plan 2011/12 – 2015/16
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Government adopted the most recent Five Years Development Plan 2011/12 – 2015/16, which aims at unleashing the growth potential through education and especially through higher education. The five Years Development Plan which ends in 2015/2016 aims at creating specific human resource capacity which includes training 88,000 engineers and architects, 64,000 medical, dental and veterinary scientists, 26,000 physical scientists and 320,000 teachers. These are gigantic targets for an economy like ours. These national targets require stakeholders in the higher education to double the annual enrollment of students from the current figures of around 40,000 students to 80,000 students. Private sector participation in higher education
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The role of non-Government institutions in expanding access to higher education cannot be over emphasized. With the current enrolment rate of 30 percent of the total student population in universities and colleges, the private sector has played a significant role in helping the Government to reach its strategic goals. Let me take this opportunity to thank private institutions and especially St. Joseph University in Tanzania for a job well done. Big Results Now!
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training has recently inaugurated its version of Big Results Now initiative (BRN). I am sure that by now you all know that in the quest of attaining big fast results to attain the goals of Vision 2025, the Governmwent has selected six strategic sectors as of high priority in terms of resource allocation. Education is one of them. Our Big Results Now aims at improving the quality of pre-primary, primary and secondary education. Although higher education is not specifically mentioned in the initiative, you can easily see the direct connection. With improved lower levels of education, university entrants will be quality candidates, hence, making your work in universities relatively easier to impart necessary skills to your students. In order to implement Big Results Now successfully, teachers trained in universities in our country will have to be of high quality. Our need is for well-trained competent teachers – not just teachers. Teachers who able to transmit knowledge to students. Therefore, I would like take this opportunity to ask St. Joseph University College to consider to enhance and expand your teachers training School to benefit this Country and the new initiative – Big Results Now. Higher Education Students loans
Ladies and Gentlemen,
While I take stock of the good work that private institutions have done, it is also important to remind you as well as Tanzanians around the country that each one of us has an obligation to contribute to the development of higher education in cash and in kind. My Ministry, through the Higher Education Students’ Loans Board (HESLB) will continue to provide loans to needy students depending on availability of funds. Higher education students loans disbursed by the government has expanded from Shillings 56.1 billion in 2005/2006 to 326 billion in financial year 2012/2013. This is a 481 percent increase in higher education students’ loans in a period of seven years only. Clearly, this is a substantial increase in students’ loans, and it is a lot of money. I am aware that the fund does not cater for all needy students. The Government is in the process of finding alternative means that will supplement Government funds and enable all needy students to access loans.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
While the amount of higher education students loans disbursed have accumulated to a total of shillings 1.45 trillion, only shillings 35 billion have so far been recovered from beneficiaries. Many graduates who have benefitted from loans have remained unidentified. My Ministry through the Higher Education Students’ Loans Board is committed to increase the amount of loans recovered. We will undertake a number of strategies and actions to ensure that loans are recovered. Let me take this opportunity to remind those who are graduating today that repayment of loans is guided by law and that you will be committing an offence by not repaying loans extended to you by the Government. Employers on the other hand are obliged to cooperate with the Higher Education Students’ Loan Board and their reluctance to cooperate is also punishable by law. Quality Higher education
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is important to note that our efforts to expand higher education must go with quality. I would like to take this opportunity to underscore the need for each university to establish a quality assurance unit whose function will be to ensure that quality is improved and sustained. It is important for our Universities to continuously bench‐mark with other Universities not just within the region but also globally. Strive to learn best practice from others and improve!
Ladies and Gentlemen,
While the mandate of Universities remains that of teaching, research and public service, incubation centers are increasingly being viewed as critical links between the academia and the public. Incubation provides opportunities for application of knowledge and research results to solve problems in society through extension work and other outreach activities. To this end, the role of research cannot be over emphasized. I urge your university to consider establishment of innovation and incubation facilities for your students and for industry. Within incubation centres, critical skills such as entrepreneurship should be imparted to ensure that the University produces job creators and not just job seekers. Rev. Chancellor, Graduands,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let me end my speech here by commending you and your staff for having worked tirelessly to ensure that those graduating today successfully completed their studies. I also would like to thank the parents, guardians and sponsors for having provided the necessary support to the graduands. As I conclude, I wish to once again congratulate graduands and urge them to be good ambassadors of this reputable College and University. The University has adequately prepared you for the challenges ahead of you by equipping you with the virtues of hard work, commitment and integrity. I do hope you will make a positive difference as you go out into the world of work to render the desired service to our Country.
My best wishes to you all and
Thank you very much for your kind attention!
Comments
Post a Comment