Mogae is BIUST founding Chancellor

CALISTUS KOLANTSHO
Correspondent | Monday October 8, 2012 00:00

 

Speaking after the inauguration, Mogae explained that BIUST was conceived with the intention to add impetus to the quest for developing the human capital, especially in specialised areas such as engineering, science and technology. He said the institution is meant to increase the scientific awareness and aptitude of Batswana as an important step towards transforming the country into a knowledge society. He stated that the university was conceived to be international in the way it does its business. He said it was intended to attract the world's renowned academics and researchers. He said that engineering, science and technology remain the platform and essential ingredients for achieving sustainable economic development and effective global competitiveness as a nation.

'The realisation of our economic diversification and growth initiatives are anchored on the adequate supply of these critical and scarce skills. The absence of these skills, on the one hand, will inhibit our ability to be innovative in much of what we do and thereby slowing down the pace of our development,' he said. Mogae said as a research-intensive university, BIUST is designed, through its problem-based learning and teaching mode, to produce graduates that are not only employment-ready, but globally competitive. He explained that the teaching mode of the university is designed to assist students to identify industry problems as well as provide applicable solutions to them. He noted that the approach will relieve the employers of the burden of retraining recruits from BIUST before they can add value to the workforce. He promised that as chancellor, he will work closely with both the BIUST council and management to ensure that the university remains focused on its mandate as it continuously improves the way it does business.

Mogae pointed out that BIUST is in the process of establishing a number of sector-based industry advisory councils through which the private sector will be called upon to make an input towards strengthening the curriculum and the building of competent graduates.

Meanwhile, Mogae said he would have preferred BIUST students to have been admitted at the newly built Palapye campus so that they can detect any defects in the buildings but he was convinced otherwise. He said that he was afraid that liability period might pass before the buildings are utilised.