Train for regional jobs, Alupo tells universities
Education minister Jessica Alupo (L) talks to Busitema University Vice Chancellor Mary Okwakol (R) during graduation at the university last Saturday. Photo by Joseph Omollo
Tororo- The Minister of Education, Ms Jessica Alupo. has called upon universities in Uganda to be innovative and train students in courses that meet regional job demands.
Ms Alupo said academic programmes such as technology development will enhance the country’s relevance and competitiveness in attaining middle class job creators than the current society of largely job- seeking people.
“We have heard reports that employers in some disciplines prefer
non-Ugandan graduates because ours are irrelevant to their job description. We do not want this ever to apply to the graduates of Busitema University and any other public university in this country,” Ms Alupo said.
She added: “ I am pleased to note that this call for quality education is being addressed in most universities through embracing and adopting the concept of total quality management.”
The minister was speaking at the sixth graduation ceremony of Busitema University last Saturday where 1,065 students graduated in different disciplines.
She said government has set up a plan to ensure that every academic institution has proper facilities to offer quality teaching from primary through secondary to university level.
She said interventions include funding of infrastructural development, salary enhancement for staff and the recently introduced university student loan scheme.
The university vice chancellor, Prof Mary Okwakol, appealed for support from government in areas of infrastructural development to ensure quality teaching, innovation, and research and community engagement for commercialisation of knowledge transfer.
