Raila, Museveni to champion cross-border education

Written By:PMPS,    Posted: Fri, Dec 09, 2011

The two leaders said admitting students from across the region to learning institutions would encourage sharing of ideas (File Photo) Prime Minister Raila Odinga and President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda have pledged to champion cross-border education as a means of strengthening the integration of the East Africa Community. At fundraising meeting for Busoga University on the outskirts of Jinja Town, the two leaders said admitting students from across the region to learning institutions would encourage sharing of ideas and the building of bridges across various cultures and politics.  President Museveni challenged students to develop a regional mindset and look beyond their nations for opportunities. Mr Odinga observed that admission of students from across the region was the norm in the years leading to independence and soon after. He cited Makerere and Dar es Salaam universities as some of the institutions that admitted students from all the nations of the region. As a result of the cross border admissions, the learning institutions produced leaders with pan-Africanist and regional vision, the PM said. He cited the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, former President Benjamin Mkapa, the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, President Museveni and President Mwai Kibaki as some of the leaders who went to school in Makerere and Dar es Salaam. He said all the leaders tended to favour closer integration as opposed to individualism. Mr Odinga attended the Busoga University fundraiser at the invitation of Ms Rebecca Kadaga, the Speaker of the Ninth Parliament of the Republic of Uganda. Ms Kadaga is the first woman Speaker in the entire East African region. Busoga University is a private institution where majority of students are from Kenya while many others come from Sudan and other countries in the region. Over 500 Kenyans are pursuing their education here, out of a student population of slightly over 1000. Unlike in other foreign universities, the foreign students here pay same fees as locals. The PM observed that three years ago, Busoga University delayed the start of its first semester by two weeks to enable Kenyan students who were trapped by election violence back home to join. "By that single act, the university played a significant role in cementing regional integration in a way no single politician would have," he said. "It was a demonstration that the integration of this region will not be achieved by the acts of politicians alone. Integration will come from actions of individuals like the young men and women crossing the border to pursue education here and the institutions and mangers that demonstrate we are indeed one people," the PM said. Mr Odinga said quality education that imparted shared values of the region would determine the breed of leaders the region gets and called for a speedy integration of the regional education curriculum. President Museveni called on governments to support private learning institutions saying they were helping the states fulfill their mandates. The President however called on universities to start degree courses that were in line with the region's development agenda and which imparted entrepreneurship in graduates.