PHUTI MOSOMANE
Deputy President Paul Mashatile will deliver a keynote address at the 150th anniversary of the University of South Africa on Monday.
The event, which will mark a century and a half of the celebrated University’s existence, will take place at the ZK Mathews Hall in Pretoria.
Mashatile is expected to use the occasion to reflect on how the university has shaped Africa’s intellectual futures over the past 150 years.
As the Chairperson of the Human Resources Development Council, his office said he would congratulate Unisa and its leadership on its continued commitment to providing quality education to students across the African continent and providing much-needed skills for the development of Africa.
The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr Blade Nzimande, will also be addressing the University of South Africa (Unisa) 150th Anniversary Celebration on Monday under the theme “Reclaiming Africa’s Intellectual Futures”.
Since its establishment on 26 June 1873, Unisa has been at the forefront of the growth and development of South Africa’s higher education system.
Consequently, Unisa has shaped the futures of many people from diverse backgrounds in South Africa, on the African continent and globally.
Not only did Unisa spawn the university system in South Africa, but it was also the first university in the world to adopt open distance education, a modality that has become even more resourceful in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and the developments in digitisation and the 4IR.
Nzimande said it is thus Unisa’s considered view that as an integral part of the university system, locally and globally, the University will use the occasion of Unisa’s birthday to celebrate this important milestone, to reflect on the past and its challenges, and to carve a strategic path towards an envisaged future Unisa, which will continue to play a central role in knowledge generation and the production of quality graduates.
Former President Thabo Mbeki, Unisa Chancellor, MJ Maboa, Chairperson of the Council and Professor Puleng LenkaBula, Vice-Chancellor and Principal, will be part of the celebrations.
Governance issues
The Unisa council has asked Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande not to disband them but to appoint an additional three members to assist them in performing their duties.
The council pleaded with Nzimande, following an explosive 309-page report by the University of Pretoria academic Themba Mosia, after investigating allegations that the council was ineffective and maladministration claims against principal and vice-chancellor Professor Puleng LenkaBula.
Mosia recommended to Nzimande that the council be disbanded, LenkaBula sacked, and an administrator appointed to run Unisa.
Nzimande is studying the report.
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