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Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Correspondent
THE Government has said the gap between skills and literacy levels needs to be closed as more than half of educated people lack requisite survival skills.

Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Professor Amon Murwira said the country’s literacy levels, which stand between 94 to 96 percent, have given a wrong impression about the country’s skills levels which stand at 38 percent.

“Our intention by the end of five years is to have internationalised Zimbabwe’s higher and tertiary education system. In doing so, we are going to make sure that we reduce the gap between skills and literacy,” he said.

“In the mean time, the skills levels are at 38 percent while literacy is at 94 to 96 percent. What that means is that we have a 58 percent gap to fill for skills because when you are literate and skilled you are an educated population. If you have a literate population it does not translate to an educated population if the skills are not good.”

Prof Murwira said for the ministry to close this gap it has to address infrastructural problems at tertiary institutions, adhere to a standardised promotions criteria while having sound loans to support students.

He said the Ministry’s intention was to turn the higher education sector into an economic sector rather just a social services one.

“We need to continue with the industrialisation agenda through knowledge. What that means is that we are going to finish off our innovation hubs. You know we did it for six State universities, we are going to do the same for rest of the State universities, which means we are going to do the same for the eight more universities,” Prof Murwira said.

Innovation hubs are incubation centres for novelty at higher and tertiary institutions and the Midlands State University’s innovation hub was commissioned in June.

Other innovation hubs are still under construction at other universities.

Prof Murwira said the Ministry will be implementing industrial parks where prototypes that come from innovation hubs are turned into commercial products.

He said institutions of higher and tertiary education should adhere to the national qualification framework by February next year.

“We are also going to ramp up our infrastructural development programme which means that our dream of university towns is going to be realised now,” said the Minister.

“And we speak today, I had three investment meetings, so we want to make sure that this infrastructure has been done well. We are also going to make sure that we keep on working very hard on the issue of facilitating students loans and students financial services so that we can drive the other programme.”

He said higher and tertiary education institutions should always strive to improve the quality of their products as being content with a status quo was a very dangerous attitude. – @nqotshili.