Honourable guests, Ladies and Gentlemen There are several aspects of Higher Education in this country that must be addressed if we are to develop, namely: Access, Quality, Relevance, and Management and Good Governance. Access to higher education still remains a privilege of a few people in this country. We must increase the numbers of students able to access university education through having more available places. Sadly, we are amongst the lowest performing countries in our region in this regard. We need to improve, both by expanding enrollment at existing universities and through the creation of new universities. It is the wish of my government that more youth are enrolled in university as higher education is critical to the development of this country. We need also to venture into a wide variety of disciplines, critical to the development of Malawi. The 686 graduands before us today represent the future leaders of this country, whether they be teachers, scientists, poets, entrepreneurs, lawyers or future politicians. The quality of university education needs also to be critically accessed. A university degree is of little use to anybody if the person has not received quality education. A student needs well qualified lecturers, ideally at PhD level, good library, laboratory and classroom facilities and decent accommodation to be able to succeed. Once again, we must acknowledge that achieving this level of quality is a challenge to our universities. Government has recently established the National Council for Higher Education. The first challenge of this new organization is to monitor, register and accredit universities and academic programmes to make sure that no university student, whether at a private or a public university, has a sub-standard education. Relevance of education is another key factor for higher education in Malawi. We need pogrammes that are responsive to the development needs of our country. We need students who can think critically, clearly and communicate well and have expertise in critical areas needed by our country for development. I note that Mzuzu University focuses on Education and Teacher Training, Environmental Sciences, Health Sciences, Information Sciences and Tourism and Hospitality Management. These are all relevant areas of study for national development and I challenge the University to work hand in hand with stakeholders, including the private sector, to make sure that the courses they give meet the needs of students, future employers and the country as a whole. I also challenge the University to develop students who can become entrepreneurs and future business leaders. We need graduates who can create jobs as well as occupy jobs. I will be failing my duty if I don’t put emphasis on need for good management and governance in universities. Universities must follow the Acts and statutes under which they operate, develop and fairly administer good internal policies, procedures and regulations in a timely manner and be bastions of integrity. It is essential that all members of a university, namely staff and students, follow these internal procedures and regulations and, above all, retain a high level of integrity.
Posted on: Fri, 22 Aug 2014 10:01:50 +0000
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