Africa-Press – Namibia. FORMER President and Chancellor of the University of Namibia, Nangolo Mbumba, said Namibia faces multifaceted challenges that demand innovative and practical solutions.
Mbumba made the remarks during the 8th University of Namibia graduation ceremony for the four Northern Campuses: Hifikepunye Pohamba, Oshakati, Ogongo, and the Engineer Jose Eduardo dos Santos Campuses, held in Ongwediva on Wednesday.
According to Mbumba, among these challenges are water scarcity, high unemployment rates, energy insecurity, an over-reliance on raw mineral exports, an underdeveloped manufacturing sector, inadequate housing, and insufficient transport infrastructure to support economic and social development.
He indicated that each of these challenges is not only an obstacle to progress but also an opportunity for engineers and researchers to innovate, collaborate, and lead.
“I am aware that UNAM is determined to play a role to ensure that higher education provides relevant skills and knowledge to our young people as a means of enabling them to contribute meaningfully to the development of Namibia, the African continent, and further afield,” he said.
He added that a total of 864 students graduated in various fields such as Accounting and Auditing, Agriculture, Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Nursing Science, and Public Health.
Mbumba explained that these graduates are not only meeting existing demands but are also leading efforts to reskill and upskill for emerging industries in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.
He then commended UNAM for its commitment to providing quality education to the youth that will enable them to tackle the challenges of the 21st century.
Meanwhile, UNAM Vice-Chancellor Kenneth Matengu has urged the graduates to hold on to their goals, even if they stumble, and to learn lessons from their own mistakes—and most importantly, to avoid the blame game.
Matengu indicated that the country is on a new trajectory: transitioning from a resource extractive-based economy to one where knowledge is increasingly an important commodity.
“One of the hurdles which often work as a speed breaker is their attitude—the mental block to think and to consider higher targets and goals to overcome the impossible,” he said.
He added that nothing in life has ever been achieved because of entitlement. Thus, they should know that knowledge is wealth, and they should understand it, release it, and maximize it.
He stressed that if poverty is the challenge, they must confront it by creating the freedom to innovate. Poverty is the absence of the freedom to think and poor access to economically viable knowledge.
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