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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected]

THE goal of the Government’s new educational policy is to generate graduates who have knowledge, skills, and an entrepreneurial mindset, which it has termed “ukwazi,” “ukwenelisa,” and “ukwenza.”

At the 55th graduation ceremony for United College of Education (UCE) in Bulawayo yesterday, the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science, and Technology Development, Professor Amon Murwira, said the new thrust was a significant departure from the inherited colonial education system, which focused on only three missions of teaching, research, and community service under Education 3.0.

“The new education system Heritage Based Education 5.0 has five missions, teaching, research, community service, innovation and industrialisation,” said Professor Murwira.

The ceremony was held under the theme, “Repositioning Teacher Education for a modernised economy through heritage based education.”

Professor Murwira said a nation’s degree of growth is directly related to the knowledge and skills of its populace. For this reason, President Mnangagwa oversaw the change of the Education 3.0 to Heritage Based Education 5.0.

“Government of Zimbabwe is determined to cause industrialisation and modernisation in this country using correct knowledge, innovation, skills and attitudes but on our heritage and resultantly Government is deliberately implementing the Graduate Employment Creation and Development Programme which anchors on Heritage Based Education 5.0,” said Professor Murwira.

The 662 graduates were drawn from three different programs—General Course, Early Childhood Development and Inclusion, and Special Education Needs (ISEN. Only 53 were men.

Before the start of the proceedings, College principal Dr Adam Luthuli asked dignitaries and invited guests to observe a minute of silence in honour of a lecturer from the ISEN department Mrs Makhosazana Mthupha and four students from the same department who passed on during the course of their studies, Ms Rudo Mutengwa, Mr Tatenda Pfende, Mr Simawu Phoebie and Mr Takundwa Takunda.

In his welcome remarks, Dr Luthuli said the graduation comes after a lengthy period as the graduands who were graduating were from the class of 2020.

“This class should have completed their course in December 2022, however due to the COVID-19 pandemic they had to complete the course in August 2023 and got the results after the 2023 harmonised elections,” said Dr Luthuli.

The United College of Education was founded in 1968 through the generosity of the Christian community and in 1982, the institution was donated to the Government of Zimbabwe by the Catholic, Anglican, Evangelical Lutheran, the United Congregational, the Methodist, the Salvation Army, the United Methodist as well as the Church of Christ.