Low standard universities to be downgraded to college status 

Fri, 24 Feb 2017 10:05:15 +0000

By AARON CHIYANZO

UNIVERSITIES in Zambia that do not meet international status and standards risk being downgraded to mere colleges, Minister of Higher Education Nkandu Luo has warned.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony for the Zambia Institute of Banking and Financial Services (ZIBFS) in Lusaka, Prof. Luo said that all universities in Zambia needed to be of high and international standard.

She said that universities needed to produce graduates that were able to contribute positively to the growth of the nation by being competitive.

Prof. Luo said that her ministry was on a mission to transform the education sector in Zambia and ensure that artisan skills were revived.

She wondered why skills such as bricklaying, carpentry and others had to be sourced from other countries when the country had the capacity to equip people with such skills.

“All universities in Zambia should be of high standard and competitive. We will not hesitate to down grade universities of sub-standard to colleges.

We need universities that will produce graduates who will contribute to national development.

You will now see the education sector transformed,” she said.

And Prof. Luo advised the graduates to endeavor to attain the highest level of education in their fields of study.

She said that they should not be content with what they had achieved but that they should aim higher because it was still the beginning.

Prof. Luo also urged the graduates to help transform the nation and ensure that the general citizenry was well informed about financial matters.

Meanwhile, ZIBFS president Cephas Chabu said that the banking sector was key in transforming Zambia’s economy and that the institute was committed to producing graduates of high calibre.

Mr Chabu congratulated the graduates and implored them to help transform the financial sector in Zambia.