Higher and tertiary education institutions urged to act as centres of excellence

Harare (New Ziana) -President Emerson Mnangagwa on Thursday said institutions of higher and tertiary education should act as centres of research, innovation and industrialization by leveraging local resources to produce goods and services for the nation.

He was speaking at the Inaugural Presidential Innovation Fair for tertiary education institutions at a packed 4500 seater auditorium at the Harare International Conference Center.

Several higher and tertiary education institutions, agencies and other government research and innovation departments were exhibiting new products that are either nearing completion or already at the commercialization stage and making significant interventions to meet national needs and challenges.

The Innovation Fair is meant to showcase the strides that Zimbabwe is making in innovation that is anchored in the newly adopted education philosophy of Heritage-based education 5.0.

President Mnangagwa, who had earlier on toured the 35 exhibition stands by tertiary and government scientific and industrial training centres, said it was the expectation of the government that institutions of higher learning continue producing highly adaptive graduates who have new skills necessary for meeting the productive needs of the country.

“Innovation should not only be at the innovation hubs and industrial parks, our private sector should take advantage of this initiative by the government and also be innovative through developing a culture of and investing strongly in research and development. Through this, they will be able to improve productivity, reduce costs, increase competitiveness, improve brand recognition and value,” he said.

He said innovation was an engine for growth and prosperity in any society and an avenue in which new technologies were built that could transform the lives of the people.

Through the adaption of the 5.0 education model, significant improvement had been witnessed in the quality of education which was now mastering the need to innovate instead of the colonial education design which churned out graduates to be mere employees, he said.

“Given these great strides, the Second Republic saw it fit to celebrate, motivate and reward the institutions and talented innovative young boys and girls who have excelled in innovation. The recognition and appreciation of the achievers should motivate others to build a larger community of innovators in our universities and colleges,” he said.

President Mnangagwa said for the country to beat the effects of the illegal sanctions, there was need to fast-track industrialization and modernization through embracing science and technological innovations.

“It is encouraging that through the innovation hubs and industrial parks, our institutions of higher learning are now registering a record number of patents as well as developing prototypes.”

He acknowledged last year’s launch of ZimStat 1, the country’s first satellite in orbit as well as Verify Engineering Pvt Ltd.’s initiative of producing medical oxygen as milestone achievements.

Speaking at the same occasion, Vice President Constatine Chiwenga, who is also the Minister of Health and Child Care, said the investment the Second Republic was making in innovation had seen the country becoming more self reliant in technology rather than relying on other countries.

“As the Minister of health, I can testify that had it not been for local institutions that produced sanitizers and other equipment, including medical oxygen, things could have gone a lot worse.

“This shows that the innovation thrust is not just talk but a tangible national strategy,” he said.

Verify Pvt Ltd received the overall best prize for the most innovative institution and walked away with a trophy and USD 50 000 while first runners up Chinhoyi University of Science and Technology received a trophy and USD$30 000.

The Zimbabwe National Geospatial and Space Agency who were second runners up received USD$ 20 000.

President Emerson Mnangagwa on Thursday said institutions of higher and tertiary education should act as centers of research, innovation, and industrialization by leveraging local resources for the production of goods and services for the nation.

He was speaking at the Inaugural Presidential Innovation fair for tertiary education institutions at a packed 4500 auditorium seater at Harare International conference center.

Several higher and tertiary education institutions, agencies, and other government research and innovation departments were exhibiting innovations that are either nearing completion or already at the commercialization stage and making significant interventions to meet the needs and challenges of the nation.

The innovation fair is meant to showcase the strides that Zimbabwe is making in innovation that is anchored in the newly adopted education philosophy of Heritage-based education 5.0.

President Mnangagwa, who had earlier on toured the 35 exhibition stands by tertiary and government scientific and industrial training centers, said it is the government’s expectations that the country’s institutions of higher learning will continue to produce highly adaptive graduates who have new skills necessary for meeting the productive needs of the country.

“Innovation should not only be at the innovation hubs and industrial parks, our private sector should take advantage of this initiative by the government and also be innovative through developing a culture of and investing strongly in developments
“Through this, they will be able to improve productivity, reduce costs, increase competitiveness, improve brand recognition and value,” he said.

The Head of State and the government said Innovation is an engine for growth and prosperity in any society and an avenue in which new technologies are built that can transform people’s lives.

He said through the adaption of the 5.0 education model, significant improvement has been witnessed in the quality of education which is now mastering the need to innovate instead of the colonial education design which churned out graduates to be mere employees.

“Given these great strides, the 2nd republic saw it fit to celebrate, motivate and reward the institutions and talented innovative young boys and girls who have excelled in innovation.
“The recognition and appreciation of the achievers should motivate others to build a larger community of innovators in our universities and colleges,” said President Mnangagwa.

He said for the country to beat the effects of the illegal sanctions there’s been to fast-track in the industrialization and modernization of the country through embracing science and technological innovation.

“It is encouraging that through the innovation hubs and industrial parks, our institutions of higher learning are now registering a record number of patents as well as developing prototypes.”

He acknowledged last year’s launch of ZimStat 1, Zimbabwe’s first satellite in orbit as well as Verify Engineering Pvt Ltd’s innovations of producing medical oxygen as milestone achievements.

Vice President Constatine Chiwenga, who is also the Minister of Health and Child Care said the investment the 2nd republic is making in innovation has seen the country becoming more self reliant in technology rather than waiting for innovations from other countries.

“As the Minister of health, I can testify that had it not been for local institutions that produced sanitizers and other equipment, including medical oxygen, things could have gone a lot worse.
“This shows that the innovation thrust is not just talk but a tangible national strategy,” he said.

Verify Pvt Ltd received the overall best prize for the most innovative institution and walked away with a trophy and US$50 000 while first runners up Chinhoyi University of Science and Technology received a trophy and US$30 000.

The Zimbabwe National Geospatial and Space Agency who were second runners up received US$20 000.

New Ziana