______
WELCOME SPEECH
BY
TJAMA TJIVIKUA
VICE-CHANCELLOR
AT
GRADUATION CEREMONY
21 APRIL 2017
WINDHOEK
REIMAGINING UNIVERSITY ENGAGEMENT IN THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY
Website: ; E-mail: ; Tel: +264 61 207 2001/2; Fax: +264 61 207-2100
Honourable Speaker of the National Assembly and Chancellor of NUST, Professor Peter Katjavivi and Madame Jane Katjavivi
Honourable Minister of Higher Education, Training and Innovation, Dr Itah Kandjii-Murangi
Honourable Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Training and Innovation, Dr Becky Ndjoze-Ojo
Mr Goms Menette, Vice-Chairperson of the NUST Council
Honourable Ministers and Members of Parliament
Your Excellencies Members of the Diplomatic Corps
Distinguished Council Members
Distinguished Guests
Revered Academics, Scholars and Staff of NUST
Honoured Graduates of NUST
Students of NUST
Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen
Yesterday, we held a beautiful ceremony for the Faculty of Management Sciences, an occasion at which His Excellency the President of Namibia complimented the University and extolled the graduates to stand out as drivers of change. About one thousand graduates saw themselves crossing the finish line to graduation.
Similarly, we shall see another thousand graduates who will earn the rite of passage from being studentsto being graduates from the following Faculties: Computing and Informatics, Engineering, Health and Applied Sciences, Human Sciences, and Natural Resources and Spatial Sciences.
Year-on-year, increasing numbers of our student population and graduates are employed, the gender balance shifting more in favour of women, whichare marks ofachievement and emancipation. Many of these courageous and competitive men and womenare married with full responsibilities for parenting, job demands and requirements, and other social responsibilities as good citizens. It is truly gratifying to see more and more progress in the qualified and competitive workforce.
May I claim the greatest of joys and the minutest of credit for taking extra time in my daily life to advise, encourage or sponsor a needy or destitute student, a young mother or father, or the young professional to advance their development goals.
Ladies and gentlemen
As I acknowledge and recognize all of you, allow me to single out a few personalities in our midst:
Firstly, the NUST Chancellor, the Honourable Speaker of the National Assembly, Professor Peter Katjavivi, a world renowned historian, diplomat and academic. Your grace and generosity - of time and wisdom - are remarkable and enrich everyone whom you encounter. Under your stewardship and tutelage, this University can only move in the right direction and achieve great things, and this is already happening. It is humbling to be lead by you and to learn from you.
Secondly, the Honourable Minister of Higher Education, Training and Innovation, Dr Itah Kandjii-Murangi, who will deliver the keynote address today.
NUST, as a proactive player in higher education, welcomes your positive spirit of engagement, support and guidance. Together, we shall change Namibia for the better.
Let me also acknowledge the Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Training and Innovation, Dr Becky Ndjoze-Ojo, whosecritical support and guidance provide a cushion of comfort in this complex environment.
To all of you, I say, thank you for yourendless support and collaboration in the effort to advance the national development agenda collectively and in innovative ways.
Ladies and Gentlemen
The GlobaI Innovation Index (GII) of 2016 - amongst other things -is based on measuring human capital development, research, development funding, university performance and international applications of patents - ranks Namibia’s innovative capacity lowly at 93 out of 128 countries.
In other words, the Report highlights Namibia’s weakness in the areas of human capital and research, and knowledge and technology outputs.
Two critical lessons emerge from this Report: First is that innovation is a critical factor that pushes countries to empower people and collaborate beyond boundaries in order to solve problems at individual, societal, regional and global levels. Secondly, at the centre of an economy’s competitiveness is its capacity to leverage the human factor. It is specifically in this space where higher education should make significant contributions.
So while Namibia is striving to become of a knowledge economy andis yearning for prosperity, it cannot do so without investing more in higher education and managing this sector better. No matter our intentions, hollow plans and a lot of talk will take us nowhere. An old friend man of mine told me a few years ago: “If all the talk is development, then we are already developed.” In reality, we’re so far away from the desired goal.
As we celebrate our 22nd anniversary as a university - under the themeReimagining University Engagement in the Knowledge Economy, we are redefining the national development agenda in the context of a global revolutionunderpinned byknowledge, technology, innovation, and sustainability.
This is in light of the vulnerable and fragile position in which Namibia finds herself, marked by periods of national disasters (such as droughts and floods), food and energy insecurity, low levels of productivity, innovation and competitiveness, and a precarious economic condition market by the scramble for resources, to name a few.
It is for this reason that we have framed a theme for this year that speaks to the renewal of the University and its engagement with society from a position of sustainability. Our perspectivecan be found in many institution-wide initiatives such as a solar campus, a green office blueprint, reduced consumption bills, waste reduction and recycling practices, extension of lifecycles of assets, and a culture of efficiency.
As the national university of science and technology, our mandate extols us to create new technological disciplines that promote science, technology, engineering and mathematics,and that promotes applied research and innovation. Today, you will see the wonderful outputs in this regard.
As we move forward, thecore business and ancillary activities of the University will be steered to reflect our dedication to a curriculum framework thatcontinues to develop technological and leadership skills for the graduates to enter the workplace as competitive professionals. They will lead businesses competently in a multi-national and complex global market. This is being achieved through academic experience attained through practical business specialisations that form part of every programme as well as research applied to real-life challenges. It is thus no surprise that NUST is a preferred academic player in Namibia and globally.
The developmental challenges are complex and endless, and these include thelack of local talent, the poor funding and financial cuts in government subsidiescomplicated by a complex bureaucracy, all that have a pernicious effect on the health and well-being of the University. Simply put, our programmes, research, infrastructure and partnerships are negatively affected and we run the risk of losing our competitive advantage attained at a high price.
In other words, our performance has been limited not by lack of will or creativity but by the external forces that impinge on our capacity to perform and flourish. A good planwithout proper resourcing is a dream deferred; it floats and eventually drowns in malady. That is how institutions fail, that is how nations fail.
And so, the burning question is: What kind of future are we building? It will take decades to undo, if we succeed, the social and economic inequities created by colonialism and apartheid. Similarly, it will take decades to unwind the inequities created by our own wrong choices, incompetence, discrimination, tribalism, cronyism,corruption, lethargy and failure to deliver.
Economic and social development will be slow unless activated and driven by ourcollective and singular dedication to success.
Finally to the Graduates
Your journey has not always been easy or pleasant. Yet it has been adventurous and rewarding. You have kept your faith and your eyes fixed on the prize, because you know that in modern times, a qualification is thebest investment you can make and the key to a better life. Now,you and your families and your countrieswill reap the fruitsof your hard work and sacrifice. But remember: Nothing is guaranteed. Innovation doesn’t just happen. To compete effectively, you must innovate – personally and professionally - not just once but consistently, in all you do.
As enlightened world citizens, you have as special responsibility to serve humanity. And this call to action is summed up succinctly by one of the most renowned humanitarian, Mahatma Gandhi. In one of the last notes left behind in 1948, expressing his deepest social thought, he wrote:
"I will give you a talisman [lucky charm or object believed to protect one and bring good luck]. Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man [woman] whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him [her]. Will he [she] gain anything by it? Will it restore him [her] to a control over his [her] own life and destiny? In other words, will it lead to swaraj [freedom] for the hungry and spiritually starving millions? Then you will find your doubts and your self melt away."[1]
Think out of the box, and box out of your thinking. Move out of your comfort zone and invent new ones! I wish you boundless prosperity1
Welcome to one and all, and do enjoy this wonderful day with us!
-Ends.
REFERENCE
1
[1]Mahatma Gandhi, Last Phase, Vol. II (1958), p. 65.