Samia showers praise on UDSM

PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan has showered praises on University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) for producing highly competent individuals who have served and continue to serve in various leadership positions both locally and globally.

The Head of State also urged other higher institutions of learning to ensure they produce highly-skilled graduates to meet the demand of the labour market and ultimately contribute to development of the country.

President Samia made the call in her acceptance speech after she was conferred with the Honorary Doctorate Degree of Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) by the Chancellor of UDSM who is former President of the fourth phase government, Dr Jakaya Kikwete.

Dr Samia was conferred with the honorary doctorate degree during the fifth and last phase of the 52nd graduation ceremony of the oldest university in the country which was held at the Mlimani City Conference Centre in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday.

Quoting scholars and eminent persons, Dr Samia who was a special guest at the colourful event stressed that development in education system is vital for economic development of any country.

“Former President of South Africa, the late Nelson Mandela once said that it is through education that a daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, a son of a miner can become a head of a large mining company and a child of a farm worker can become a president of a big country.

“It is only through education and skilled manpower that a country can attain economic development,” Dr Samia remarked as she quoted the late icon of anti-apartheid movement in South Africa.

President Samia thus urged institutions of higher learning to ensure they produce graduates who can be employed and also create self-employment for themselves.

“The education being provided by education institutions should address challenges facing the community,” she stressed.

Dr Samia as well urged institutions of higher learning to establish technological clusters within their campuses to encourage innovation in science and technology.

“The government will extend required support to ensure the clusters produce tangible results,” she stated, urging the graduates to put into practice what they had been taught in class for the betterment of the society.

The citizen number one pointed to the fact that education system should be dynamic rather than static so that it can embrace technological advancement being experienced in other parts of the world.

Dr Samia noted that through changes taking place in the world today, there is a need to embark on reforms which will steer the country through the right direction politically, socially and economically.

“That is why I have come up with the four Rs, which stands for reconciliation, resilience, reforms and rebuilding of the nation, it is through this approach that we will be in the position to unite our country towards development,” she emphasised.

She added; “There is also need to promote academic independence since divergent ideas and opinions are crucial for spurring development.

Earlier, the Vice-Chancellor of UDSM, Prof William Anangisye, said the institution has registered a number of achievements during the past one year, including introduction of new four programmes for bachelor degrees, masters and doctor of philosophy (PhD).

Prof Anangisye mentioned another achievement as increment of funds allocated for research and innovation from 1.9bn/- during financial year 2020/2021 to 3.15bn/- during the fiscal year 2021/2022.

“The number of research projects have thus increased from 218 to 299 during the period under review, representing an increase of 23.4 per cent,” he explained.

Prof Anangisye noted further that the varsity has inked Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with a number of African countries on the teaching of Kiswahili language at UDSM.

The VC said a total of 2,115 students had graduated during the fifth phase while a total of 11,176 students had graduated during all phases of graduation ceremonies at UDSM and its colleges.

“Out of the total number, 141 students were conferred with PhD this year compared to 94 students last year,” he explained.

The Chairperson of UDSM Governing Council, Ambassador Mwanaidi Sinare, said the varsity is determined to impart needed skills to students through the UDSM Development Vision 2061.

The Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Prof Adolph Mkenda, praised President Samia and other stakeholders for providing scholarships to students who perform well in science subjects in their Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education (ACSE) to pursue first degrees in science subjects.