A three-day conference bringing together East Africa’s academia and private-sector executives is set to discuss the gap between teaching in public universities and the requirements of the job market.
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The Academia-Private Sector Partnership Forum and Exhibitions 2013, to be held from October 24-26 at Nairobi’s Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC), will draw participants from all the five partner states of the East African Community (EAC).
Meeting under the theme, “Bridging the academia and the private sector through engagement with the public sector,” the gathering of East Africa’s top brains and leading businessmen will discuss issues of mutual concern to the two key sectors.
The executive director of the East African Business Council, Andrew Luzze, told the independent East African News Agency that the private sector and universities would come together to devise appropriate strategies to address the problems of unemployment and lack of relevant skills by graduates from the region’s academic institutions.
“The students say there are no jobs. The private sector says they have the jobs, but the skills needed by the private sector are not the ones the students have,” he said.
Commenting on the meeting, the Inter-University Council for East Africa Executive Secretary, Prof Mayunga Nkunya said the meeting will discuss how to mould curriculums that will produce graduates with the right skills and attitudes. Mr Luzze said that 250 participants had already confirmed attendance.
There will be 77 exhibitors from both the universities and the private sector. The keynote presentations will be made by Prof Keto Mshigeni, vice-chancellor of the Hubert Kairuki Memorial University, Tanzania and Vimal Shah, chairman of the East African Business Council.
Prof Mshigeni will speak on “The role of academia-private sector partnerships in harnessing emerging socio-economic opportunities in East Africa,” while Mr Shah will make a presentation on “The role of the private sector in harnessing emerging socio-economic opportunities in East Africa.”
Roundtable discussions will feature prominent personalities from the region and beyond, among them Prof Emmanuel Tumussime-Mutebile, chairperson of the Makerere Private Sector Forum and Governor of the Bank of Uganda; Dr Gaspard Banyankimbona, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education and Scientific Research in Burundi and Dr Hassan Mshinda, Director General of the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology.
Other prominent personalities at the forum will include Phyllis Kandie, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism; Prof Jacob Kaimenyi, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; Dr Richard Sezibera, the Secretary General of the EAC; Prof Mabel Imbuga, acting chairperson of the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) and Alex Ntale, Director of the Rwanda ICT Chamber.
By Anne Kiruku of EANA
