Source: Govt mulls turning colleges into industrial training centres | The Herald
Abigail Mawonde Herald Correspondent
The Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Ministry is considering the transformation of more colleges into industrial training centres, a move meant to ensure that the education sector meets the country’s new thrust for industrialization and modernisation.
Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo revealed this during a graduation ceremony held at Mupfure Self Help College in Chegutu recently.
“We are participating in this 27th graduation ceremony against the background of an ongoing process within government to review and realign our education system from ECD to university and to do so in order to make it relevant to Zimbabwe’s quest for industrialisation and modernisation.
“We have proposals before us that we are considering — which are the transformation of three colleges to make them industrial training and trade testing centres. These are Danhiko, St Peters Kubatana and Mupfure Self Help College,” he said.
Prof Moyo added: “The proposals are real because they have been inspired by the excellent work that these three institutions have done over the years and we fully support the process that they are going through to transform themselves and join the two existing industrial training centres — which are the Msasa Industrial Training Centre in Harare and the Westgate Industrial Training Centre in Bulawayo.”
Prof Moyo said he was happy that Mupfure had already aligned to the new thrust and was working on finding better ways of engaging the industry in its projects.
“I am happy that Mupfure Self Help College has been developing a curriculum that is informed by the new initiative that we have launched as Government through our ministry and that is the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) initiative to ensure that we produce, through our education system, graduates who are STEM competent,” he said.
Prof Moyo said the STEM initiative was in response to the ministry’s obligation which is to research, develop, plan and train the human skills that are required not only in terms of the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation, but also the country’s new thrust of industrialisation and modernisation.
He said he was also happy that the country’s polytechnic and teachers’ colleges were preoccupied with the transformation agenda so as to become degree awarding institutions.
The ceremony saw 180 students graduating — 123 male and 57 female.
The theme for their graduation ceremony this year was “Manpower Development for Socio-Economic Transformation through education With Production”.
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