UNIVERSITY OF MTHWAKAZI
(UM)
No 4 Lesley Meehan Terrace, Brookhill Close
Woolwich, London SE18 6FG, United Kingdom
No 42 St David Road, Upper Houghton
JohannesburgSouth Africa, 2000
17 Motlhamme Crescent,
Unit 8, Mmabatho, 2735, South Africa
director@universityofmthwakazi.org
“Opening the doors of
learning, educational capacity and research possibilities in the area of the
economics of social problems for all marginalised communities in Africa”
1.
Introduction
Navigating
the sea of internal colonialism, genocide and ethnic cleansing with a specific
focus on the Ndebele-speaking people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) in
present-day Zimbabwe can be daunting. The University of Mthwakazi (UM) is a
community independent educational institution which provides an opportunity for
all the Ndebele-speaking people in present-day Zimbabwe and the poor people in general across Africa without
access to education to rebuild their educational careers paying particular attention
to the economics of social problems: education, health, housing,
transportation, environment, social care and the distribution of wealth, as
well as to find the solution to their
problems and defend their identity, culture, history and heritage as a united
people.
The UM is
concerned with the education, health and development of all the
Ndebele-speaking people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) and the poor people
across Africa without access to educational opportunities in established
tertiary institutions. The UM is therefore dedicated to addressing the deliberate
historical structural processes of marginalisation, genocide and ethnic
cleansing in all economic sectors affecting the daily life experiences of the Ndebele-speaking
people and the poor across Africa in general.
2. Why the University of
Mthwakazi?
The question why
represents the statement of the problem. The Ndebele-speaking people of
Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) in present day Zimbabwe have been maimed,
devastated, raped, silenced, marginalized and reduced to nothing in their
country of birth, in full view of the world and regional communities for far
too long. The duration (from 1980 to date) that the people of Matebeleland
(Mthwakazi country) have suffered, been humiliated and paid with their blood
for daring not to support the ZANU-PF regime of Robert Gabriel Mugabe and its cronies
is simply no longer acceptable.
During this period
(spanning more than 35 years) the Ndebele people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi
country) have not experienced any development at all. On the contrary, they have
continued to be exposed to brutality by the ZANU-PF regime of Robert Gabriel
Mugabe which since 1980 until today systematically embarked on a path of
destroying the infrastructure that was left behind by the former European colonial
regimes. Yet in spite of all this destruction, this brutal regime has continued
to claim sovereignty and supremacy of final legal and political authority over
the will of the people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) in present day
Zimbabwe.
Today
there is virtually nothing, resembling development and progress within the
region of the Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country). There are no roads to talk
about. The education and health system has long collapsed. The economy is non-
existent. The rule of law is something that the people of this region have
imagined and continued to dream about from the advent of settler European
colonial regimes. Successive years of oppression have comprised a succession of
deliberate measures aimed at denying the people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi
country) their social, economic, political and cultural rights.
Any challenge to colonial boundaries at this time
usually means either extending these boundaries by encroaching on neighbouring
countries or bifurcating the existing unitary state into more than one new
state. The pursuit of some form of a political structure that changes the form
and structure of an existing unitary state is fraught with difficulties. In
most instances, the groups that challenge the ruling regime usually arrive at
such a juncture after genocide had been committed and demonstrable ethnic
cleansing policies pursued by the ruling regimes, are seen and perceived to be
inimical to the survival life chances of marginalised groups in areas such as
language preservation, education, access to employment and contracts,
distribution of land, and the like.
The pressure to re-arrange the unitary state invariably
has been met with strong arm tactics from the former colonial powers, regional
and the international community with vested interests. It is also met with
plain rigid political thuggery from within the ruling regime of the country
concerned that normally characterises long-serving dictatorships, aided by a
compliant army and political party that is dependent on political patronage.
However, for the of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country), the post European
colonial years have been anything but
daily contact with various forms of genocide, ethnic cleansing and various
forms of internal colonialism.
Given this continental scene where the people of
Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) cannot access affordable education, these
people, out of necessity to survive must address the following issues:
Why is it that a unitary system of government that the
Treaty of Versailles (1884) imposed on Africa and subsequently bequeathed to us
by our founders has suddenly become unpalatable?
Does democracy (defined to be individual choice,
individual responsibility and rights of individuals) within a unitary state,
ensure non-marginalisation of ethnic groups in accessing educational
opportunities.
In Africa, democracy is simply
"single-party-participatory democracy" whatever that means! Under
this perverse view of democracy, only members of ruling parties, acting in
accordance with strictly pre-determined guidelines issued by their political
parties can enjoy some form of "democracy". This distorted view of
democracy does not allow for dissent without severe and sometimes fatal
consequences. Thus, the concept is akin to that of the rights of ruling regimes
(closely related to authoritarian rights and yet so far from widely understood
and clearly much more appealing view of democracy - individual choice,
individual responsibility and rights embedded in the individual.
Furthermore, in Africa, just as in Zimbabwe, the
difference between ruling political party rights and individual rights is that
ethnic groups have no clear and unimpeded guaranteed avenues for redress
against ruling regimes’ tyranny and genocide. For example, there many instances
where the regimes that perpetrated genocide, ethnic cleansing and marginalisation
against substantial communities were granted immunity against prosecution and
all the prominent figures from such regimes subsequently won promotion for
"thorough work" such as in present day Zimbabwe.
In many African countries, perpetrators of genocide can
still be chosen by their fellow despots to be Chairman of the Africa Union (AU).
One remembers only too well how Idi Amin, Jean-Bedel Bokassa, Arab Moi ,
Gaddafi and Robert Gabriel Mugabe, have all been elected to this post. The fact
that the AU Charter had a clause prohibiting a member state from interfering in
the internal affairs of another served all these despots well because they
committed genocide, various other atrocities and ethnic cleansing on the poor with
the full knowledge that other despots and dictators would never raise an
objection. This says a lot about how far we have to strive to prevent those who
have committed crimes against humanity from achieving the status of leading
such a continental organisation as the AU.
The survivors of genocide and ethnic cleansing have no
legal recourse in Zimbabwe (just as in most parts of Africa) for restitution
claims for the loved ones butchered for no other reason other than belonging to
different ethnic and language groupings. If the standards that were applied in
the case of Bosnia and Rwanda were to be applied to similar cases across
Africa, including Zimbabwe, most of the members of the ruling regimes would
definitely be tried for crimes against humanity.
What Africans of goodwill and other peace-loving peoples
of the world must inculcate is to spread educational opportunities to the
marginalised communities throughout Africa in order to address the historical
structural imbalances in the field of education created by European colonialism
and subsequently sustained by the new ruling elite of the ruling regimes across
Africa. The world community must also tie its foreign investment, aid and
funding to NGOs to the prevention of genocide and ethnic cleansing by such
regimes. The slaughter of citizens by one ethnic group should be prevented at
all cost and under any contrived or stated reason.
3Perhaps it is important at this juncture to highlight
how far the people of Africa have travelled since the Treaty of Versailles in
1884 that imposed a unitary system of government on Africa and subsequently
bequeathed to us by our founders. Today, however, given the excesses of ethnic
cleansing policies throughout Africa, there has been a systematic denial of
education to the poor population by siege of their educational schools and
institutions. As if to exacerbate this siege, the poor are also continuously
being exposed to daily attacks and exclusion: from classrooms, bill boards,
toilets, restaurants, post offices, work places, banks and virtually in every
sphere of their daily lives.
Following independence, many regimes such as the ZANU-PF
regime in Zimbabwe, have continuously pursued de-industrialisation policies for
many other towns and cities in order to promote their own cities. The strategy
has been to place people from their areas and ruling parties in place of those
from the marginalised areas of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) in government
jobs, as heads of companies (where these ruling regimes using government funds
have bought controlling interests). The net result has been a deliberate change
in the composition of the population to ensure majority votes for their
candidates in the near future. Those who survived the genocide and ethnic
cleansing in Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) have since been forced to migrate
across many countries in the world, including South Africa and thus create a
vacuum that can be filled by a deliberate policy to import people from the
areas of the ruling ZANU-PF regime of Robert Gabriel Mugabe as landholders
under the various modes of farm confiscation programmes.
It is pivotal that the people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi
country) penetrate the top government employment market both within and outside
Zimbabwe. Thus, it is not surprising
that the Embassies of the Zimbabwe throughout the world are completely staffed
by the personnel from the areas of the ZANU-PF regime. We state this not
because it is new or out of the ordinary, but because it has gone on for so
long to present a clear basis for this project, University of Mthwakazi.
The marginalised Ndebele people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) are turbulently
tired of being treated as third class citizens in an imposed colonial unitary
system of government that has clearly become unpalatable.
The people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) just as
all the marginalised communities throughout Africa have aspirations over the absolute
control over education, culture and broadcasting, economic development and the whole issue of local government
revenue-sharing with the central government. In addition, these people from the
marginalised regions need clear, legally-binding rights to redo-revenue demands
by the central government and any public expenditure reductions by the central
government.
3. The Impact of the
Treaty of Versailles of 1884 in present day Africa
Perhaps the greatest damage
imposed on the Ndebele speaking people of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) has
been the systematic under investment in schools (primary, secondary) and much
more critical in areas related to teaching of science subjects: chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, information
technology, and others. During the period of European de-colonisation
in Zimbabwe, the ZANU-PF ruling regime of Robert Gabriel Mugabe built
thousands of schools in the areas dominated by its so-called majority
ethnic group but hardly any in the marginalised regions of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi
country) which as a matter of fact also comprise the imposed territorial
boundaries of present day Zimbabwe. This genocide and ethnic cleansing in
education policy has serious implications for the future of people of
Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country). It reinforces
discrimination against people from these marginalised regions in employment
in the army, police, prisons and other government institutions on the basis
that people from this region lack
appropriate qualifications without an understanding of the ZANU-PF ruling
regime’s genocide and ethnic cleansing policies;
The
denial of students from Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) marginalised regions
places at teacher training colleges while accepting ALL from the regions of the
ruling ZANU-PF regime of Robert Gabriel Mugabe. This effect results in the training and deployment of more teachers
from the regions of the ruling ZANU-PF regime into ALL marginalised Matebeleland
(Mthwakazi country) schools from Grade 0 to Form 6.
Importing
civil servants into the marginalised regions of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi
country) from those of the ZANU-PF ruling regime of Robert Gabriel Mugabe to
propagate their own languages at the expense of languages in the marginalised
regions. This forces grandmothers and grandfathers in Matebeleland (Mthwakazi
country) to learn an oppressive language
of the ruling ZANU-PF regime very late in their years. This is unacceptable as
was teaching Soweto kids to learn Afrikaans in 1976.
Use of indigenous
resources of marginalised Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) communities to
develop those of the ruling ZANU-PF regime, and brutal of all, women and girls
have been compelled through various mechanisms including rape to breed with ethnic groups of the ruling ZANU-PF regime of Robert
Gabriel Mugabe and its cronies, such that for all historical and
contemporary purposes they have conceived children through genocidal breeding.
4. Ethnic identities and
Conflict
Unlike countries of
Western Europe where nation states emerged as a result of the combination of
the widespread feelings of belonging, the sharing of similar historical and
cultural symbols as well as similar belief systems and common identities
resulting in the formation of nation states, in Africa the situation has been
completely different. In the case of Africa and many parts of the
so-called Third World, nation states have been forcibly imposed by European
colonialism without consent from subjects and without any due regard to
ethnic/national, community, cultural, language and political identities and
clear territorial demarcations.
Accordingly, there are
four types of states bequeathed to the so-called Third World by former European
colonial masters:
Those
characterised by legitimate agreement and consensus between state and nation,
Those
where the majority of the population perceive the state to be an imposter and
distant,
Those
whose different large ethnic/national groups have been compelled through use of
force to belong to a particular imposed state territorial boundaries but do not
feel strongly to belonging to that particular so-called nation, and
Those
where smaller parts within a defined territory are seen as constituting a nation.
With decolonisation,
nearly all the countries in Africa, with the exception of South Africa whose
union that was founded in 1910 and subsequently endorsed by the African
National Congress following its formation in 1912, embarked on processes of
legitimising the imposed colonised boundaries and ‘nation building’. These
processes of ‘nation building’ characterised by ‘state nationalism’ rather than
‘popular nationalism’ had a particularly very weak foundation in civil society
as well as the cultural and political community.
It has been this lack
of synergy between the imposed ‘state nations’ and different nationalities that
has been responsible for conflicts between the imposed ‘state nations’ and their
forced subjects or so-called citizens. Where these conflicts exist, resources
are bound to be diverted to enforcing imposed territorial integrity at the
expense of development initiatives. The imposed ‘state nation’ on the other
hand is always perceived by its so-called ‘subjects’ as an illegitimate and
alien institution.
5. Ethnic Identities and
the formation of state nations in Africa
European labelling
considerations abound regarding definitions, in particular of a nation. In the
case of Europe, for example, the English, Welsh and the Scots in the United
Kingdom are perceived as constituting nations. Yet, similar constituted
populations in Africa with same attributes are labelled tribes. The variation
in meanings can be seen as follows:
A
nation comprises a strong widespread feeling of identity and solidarity within
a political community which equally embodies a sense of wellbeing,
Nationalism
is characterised by widespread positive and negative perception of other
political communities, and
Several
states in Africa lack indisputable legitimacy as they are forcibly constituted
by more than one nation.
Integration and various
state building processes of these nations within a particular ‘state nation’ in
Africa have involved a combination of power and vigorous lethal force, aided by
a civil and military bureaucracy bequeathed by the former European colonial
rulers. The state security apparatus of these nations has been vigorously
utilised in the political and economic development agenda as a way of forced
state building exercises against marginalised communities.
The aims of so-called
nation building within the ‘state nation’ framework have been to integrate
different nations or political communities by force within a certain imposed
territory. Within this exercise, the use of force has not been successful in
enforcing to the targeted citizens or subjects a widespread feeling of
belonging to that particular state nation. Put differently, in spite of all the
genocide, ethnic cleansing, brutality and rape meted on the marginalised
nations of Africa, the poor continue to struggle without any basic form and
access to affordable educational opportunities.
This failure of the
‘state nation’ building exercise has been due to the fact that those nations
who are forced to belong to a particular ‘state nation’ do not recognise this
imposition of a political community, including the sovereignty and legitimacy
of that particular ‘state nation’. The marginalised communities or populations
of Africa have clearly not recognised the political communities which have been
forced upon them by the ‘state nations’ of those countries.
There can be no doubt
therefore, that the marginalised people of Africa are a suppressed people, who
as a result demand full access to educational and health facilities. The
characterisation of the marginalised people across African political community
and nations derive from their long evolution with the following:
Common
language and religious beliefs,
Organising
and acting collectively against other groups or the ‘state nation’,
Common
ideology, and
Common
symbols and attributes.
In several countries in
Africa, there can be no doubt that former European colonialism was
systematically replaced by internal colonialism
that has been responsible for plunder of resources of other political
communities, and the manipulation of international relations at the expense of
the suppressed and brutalised nations within the imposed state nations’
territorial boundaries. Such plunder has been at the heart of violating the
indisputable rights of these nations to decide on their own nation building
vision and associated development priorities.
Biased development
strategies in favour of the political community in power have exacerbated the
plight of other national groups within the imposed colonial territorial
boundaries of most contemporary ‘state nations’ in Africa. These strategies
have met with international recognition at the expense of the marginalised
nations. Given that these marginalised political communities or nations within
the imposed ‘state nations’ are excluded from a proportionate share of
political and economic resources, including the benefits accrued from the
plundering exercise, there is bound to be vigorous opposition leading to direct
demands for the establishment of separate states.
Within this context,
authoritarian and hierarchical bureaucratic structures would be replaced by a
people-managed development process that regards people as consisting of
historic indigenous nationalities, nations, ethnic groupings or categories and
not individuals or imposed state nations. Within such a scenario the real basic
needs of the poor, rather than of the political community in power can be
identified and fulfilled.
This would represent a
significant fundamental shift embodying the downward and outward approach, instead
of the top down and impenetrable approach that has been responsible for
millions of miserable deaths as a result of genocide and ethnic cleansing
policies inspired by European colonialism and subsequent internal colonialism
of the postcolonial elites of present-day Africa. People-managed development
that seeks to impact local and ethnic communities including their knowledge
systems can only weaken the fearful authoritarian rule and open spaces for marginalised
people and society to begin deepening democracy in a decisive and fundamental
way.
6. The
University of Mthwakazi
The project aim is to
turn the University of Mthwakazi into a Centre for Freedom that is working for
participatory democracy and people centred development in terms of the
provision of quality education, health, housing, transportation, agriculture
and food security, infrastructural development and investment, transportation
and training for all throughout the width and breadth of the marginalised
communities in Africa.
More importantly, it is
clear that since Zimbabwe became so-called independent, marginalised people across
Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) have suffered a great deal from the genocidal
and ethnic cleansing policies of the ZANU-PF regime of Robert Gabriel Mugabe,
including, deindustrialisation, lack of land
access in their own areas, education, and side lined in current
indigenisation programmes. It is therefore imperative that the University of Mthwakazi
in cooperation and collaboration with all its stakeholders including those in
the Diaspora and potential foreign investors examine a broader form of
self-empowerment in their country of origin for the benefits of their children
and grandchildren.
Below we outline some possible strategies that could be
improved on and implemented, as a way of planning for economic development in the
marginalised regions of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) in spite of a hostile environment. Whatever one’s
cause of departure from Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) for different
destinations around the world, it is important to devise an economic development strategy that
reflects the following principles:
No
one in the marginalised regions of Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country), regardless
of race, ethnic group, religion, gender, and political affiliation shall be
dispossessed of tangible and intangible property without recourse to an
independent judiciary;
White
and black Africans throughout Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) who were
forcibly divested of their properties under a multiplicity of the ruling ZANU-PF
regime’s genocidal and ethnic cleansing policies should either get their properties back or obtain adequate
compensation from thieves who stole their properties;
Locals
must forcibly recover all land located near their traditional homes or areas
from the ZANU-PF ruling regime which illegally obtained such land with
connivance of local politicians. It is obscene
that children within a local area have no furniture in their schools when
timber is located in their areas. In other words, local communities must be
seen to benefit from resources located in their areas. Similarly, people in and
around coal producing areas must directly benefit from coal, methane gas and
tin before people from elsewhere; and
Local
stakeholders, marginalised (black and white) people from Matebeleland
(Mthwakazi country) and those in the Diaspora, and foreign investors should
enter into partnerships in order to develop their own areas. Unlike in the
areas of the ruling ZANU-PF regime where chiefs are appointed, Chiefs in Matebeleland
(Mthwakazi country) areas derive their history from time immemorial. Thus,
local partnerships should work with Chiefs to exploit local resources for the benefit of local people while
allowing foreign investors to repatriate
profits to their preferred habitat. The current indigenisation programmes in
present day Zimbabwe are inimical to the interests of marginalised people of
Matebeleland (Mthwakazi country) and should be discontinued.
The University of
Mthwakazi seeks to achieve broadly the following goals:
To
promote the development of all the schools, colleges, adult literacy centres
and ultimately the University of Mthwakazi and its associated educational
syllabus and curricular activities,
Identification
of economic activities to foster linkages and partnerships in order to address
scarce skills gaps,
Ensuring
an enabling environment for the widespread provision of quality education and
training,
Promoting
continuous technological research development,
Providing
advice and promoting dialogue in respect to compliance with quality standards,
Establishing
an environmental framework for strategic development upon which the cities of
the region, can base their development policies, plans and programmes involving
opportunities and constraints that the environment places on development,
Developing
a set of guidelines and management principles to assist informed decision
making to ensure development within sustainable limits,
Identifying
sensitive areas in terms of how anticipated future investments would impact the
cities of the region and their surrounding rural areas environmentally and socio-economically,
Assessment
of environmentally possible alternatives for the development of residential,
industrial, agricultural activities and infrastructure,
Facilitating
career-pathing, guidance and counselling,
Facilitating
marketing and advocacy of opportunities within the breadth and length of marginalised
regions of Africa through the University of Mthwakazi, and
Addressing
the critical scarcity and shortage of basic water by promoting and developing
formidable irrigation projects along the lines of California and Israel which should
also trigger industrialisation throughout Africa,
The key themes of the
University of Mthwakazi include the following:
Promotion
of quality education and rigorous development centred research,
Development
of basic survival and IT based skills base throughout all marginalised areas of
Matebeleland (Mthwwakazi country),
Capacity
building, empowerment of all communities and information dissemination,
Poverty
and inequities eradication through employment creation, and
Provision
of basic services (water, sanitation, refuse removal, electricity, roads and
others),
7. Vision
To make the University
of Mthwakazi, the socio-economic and people centred intellectual and academic hub,
accessible and celebrating cultural diversity, by striving for sustainable
development and service delivery, through public participation and optimal use
of resources.
8. Mission Statement
To provide technical,
professional and organisational skills in the field of education, primary
agriculture, health, housing, local government and rural and urban development
in terms of promoting civil society and influencing development policy and
advocating for programmes that meet the needs of the poor in all the marginalised
regions of Africa, and in particular, those that were negatively affected by
the dictatorial planning and brutal
policies of the ruling regimes that have forever created, maintained and
sustained economic inequalities.
9. Nature and Scope of
Activities
There is a need to
begin organizing workshops and conferences critically focusing on the rights of
the citizens to access quality (not dictatorial based) education and training,
the repeal of various pieces of legislation which continue to violate the
rights of citizens and the crafting of new legislation on both local and
national governance around fundamental issues as agriculture, food security,
health, economic and infrastructural development and a whole range of
developmental issues that ought to significantly impact development and transformation
throughout Africa.
Manuals on education and
training, including those around expanding the production base of literature in
general and further development based research need to be produced urgently, in
order to inform public policy debates throughout Africa. Such a process could influence
behaviour as well stabilise the political environment throughout Africa, such
that the direction that the countries take needs to be clear to all those with
such responsibilities. This process could actually prepare and equip potential
new legislators in the future with information regarding their responsibilities
once in office, in terms of what is expected of them in moving away from the
dictatorial tendencies which have characterised the ruling regimes throughout
Africa.
The whole structure of African
societies needs to be overhauled. It must change. For change to be realised it
is the people who will be driving those change processes who must be engaged
and thoroughly equipped on education and therefore, participatory democratic
values and systems. This can only be achieved at the level of educational strategic
planning workshops or conferences where all marginalised communities could
benefit from the transfer knowledge and skills from the experts and
facilitators. It is only through educational research and continued training that
we can collectively achieve justice and development throughout Africa.
10. Values
A
team tailored to the needs of marginalised communities, civil society and the
poor throughout Africa,
A
team tailored to narrowing the educational deficit, social change and social
reconstruction,
An
integrated approach, team work and team cohesion,
Consistency
through variety,
Quality
through diversity, and
Innovation
through sharing.
11. Broad Objectives
To
develop and strengthen progressive and sustainable education policy making and
educational research capacity throughout Africa,
Advocacy
building and lobbying,
Information
sharing and networking,
Research
and intellectual development
To
contribute to the development of economic, reconstruction and development
policies that ought to benefit all who live within the regions of Africa,
To
foster public and stakeholder consultation and participation,
To
foster cooperation and interaction between all educational training service
providers and the creation of synergy between all at regional level throughout
Africa,
To
develop sustainable institutional, administrative and financial capacities of
affiliated institutions,
To
extend accessibility and availability of resources and information centres
suitable for the communities,
To
lobby for and promote the provision of Adult Basic Education and Training in
terms of which mother tongue materials around income generation, tourism and
eco-tourism, agriculture, culture, traditions and gender issues are developed,
To
establish an interactive database to ensure adequate and appropriate training
to employed and unemployed people in all the regions of Africa,
To
obtain, compile and analyse data in order to develop related industry
programmes,
To
establish a research unit to provide and update information on technological
skills,
To
establish the body that will look into the quality compliance in line with
acceptable quality standards,
To
conduct skills audits for the purpose of multi-skilling and re-skilling,
To
ensure the skills retention for sustainable development,
To
formulate outreach programs to targeted marginalised groups in Africa, and
To
link skills attained with the relevant industrial centres and projects.
12. Stakeholders
The University of Mthwakazi
has formulated principles and values, which serve as a foundation on which all
affiliated institutions shall subscribe. In addition a memorandum of
understanding and a code of conduct shall be finalized. There shall be
cornerstones of the coming together of all stakeholders into the University Centre.
The major stakeholders include:
All
the Ndebele-speaking people of Mthwakazi who have been systematically
obliterated by the ZANU-PF regime and deliberately denied access to education
and training,
All
marginalised schools and colleges throughout
Mthwakazi country,
All
the traditional historic institutions (represented by Chiefs) of Mthwakazi
country,
All
marginalised people across Africa, including the poor and unemployed,
All
potential Investors of the world,
Students
from marginalised communities all over Africa,
Staff
Collective, with a multidisciplinary team comprising of specialist career natural
sciences and social science teachers, lecturers, and researchers:
educationalists, sociologists, development economists, and others,
The
university board of directors and trustees,
Other
established tertiary institutions and universities across the world with links
to the (and partnerships with the)University of Mthwakazi,
Cooperative
governments within the African continent , and
International,
continental and inter-regional Non-Governmental Organisations.
13. Social/Demographic
There
are approximately four (4) million Ndebele people who fled Zimbabwe into South
Africa and hundreds of thousands more into neighbouring countries and elsewhere
throughout the world, as well as hundreds of thousands of other ethnic groups
who fled their countries throughout Africa,
The
number of unemployed people throughout Africa, including the 4 million displaced Ndebele-speaking
people who fled into neighbouring countries, in particular, to Botswana and
South Africa,
There
is a high number of HIV/AIDS sufferers in the whole of Africa, and
The
available infrastructure bequeathed to Africa by former European colonialists
has been destroyed and industries closed.
13.1 Economic
Closure
of businesses, industries and confiscation of farms hence lack of food security,
Lack
of access to other government services, especially education, health and housing
throughout Africa, and
Lack
of representation of local people in the main stream economic sectors of Africa,
and
Hence
the need for the University of Mthwakazi - Staff Collective, with a multidisciplinary
team comprising of specialist project workers and researchers: lawyers,
educationalists, sociologists, development economists, geographers, town
planners, development planners, architects and organisational and
administrative experts, to positively impact economic development
transformation of the entire region.
13.2 Education and
Training
Declining
number of students attending educational institutions due to the economic
meltdown and also, teachers have continued to leave to seek employment elsewhere
in the neighbouring countries,
Restructuring
and transformation of educational institutions affecting both students and
staff in the area,
Absence
of any viable labour market to absorb students with university degrees or
diplomas,
Education
and training not accessible to farm workers, and
Absence
of any financial institutions that could provide loans for development projects
and bursaries to students.
13.3 Technological
Lack
of computers, printers and IT related gadgets, including the internet,
Lack
of technical training in IT related gadgets,
Lack
of access to Online educational opportunities,
Lots
of people in the region with low level of computer and internet literacy, and
Lack
of access to computer and IT related training for people in the rural areas.
13.4
Physical Facility
Lack
of accommodation facilities, e.g. hotels, guesthouses, etc.,
Poor
road networks, e.g. all roads within the region and cities in a bad state of
repair,
Lack
of water pipe to draw water from the existing rivers, and
Severe
economic meltdown.
14. SWOT Analysis
14.1 Strengths
Abundance/existence
of tertiary institutions presently doing nothing,
Availability
of infrastructure and facilities in bad state of repair that need to be
upgraded,
Existence
of inaccessible universities and colleges throughout Africa,
Availability
of human resources expertise.
14.2 Weaknesses
Lack
of educational opportunities to millions of marginalised people throughout
Africa,
Lack
of industries in the region for people to ply their trades,
Poor
coordination of efforts of institutions,
Lack
of recreational facilities,
High
unemployment rates throughout Africa,
Insufficient
conference facilities,
Poor
inter-governmental partnerships,
Poor
quality assurance centres, i.e. no evaluation and monitoring, and
Lack
of water facilities and access.
14.3 Opportunities
The
establishment of the University of Mthwakazi for all marginalised communities
in Africa,
Geographic
location favourable to the region,
Provision
of E-Learning opportunities to students
wherever they are situated,
Access
to solar and electricity energy sources in both rural and urban environments,
Collective
identification of training needs, and
Possible
change of existing political structure.
14.4 Threats
State
sponsored violence,
High
migration of skilled labour force/personnel,
Predominately
poor population with high levels of illiteracy and dependency that affect
productivity and ability to compete for jobs even if available,
Great
inequalities between the rich ethnic groups and poor ethnic groups as well as
disparities between urban and rural,
High
rate of HIV/AIDS sufferers (students and workers) as a social and economic
challenge,
Available
resources that are unevenly distributed and that offer limited potential for
improved delivery of services and growth, and
Possible
refusal of current regime to leave office.
15. Critical Success
Variables
For the University of Mthwakazi
to meet its challenges and achieve the overall objective of promoting and
turning Africa into a viable hub, it needs to do the following:
Develop
solid staff complements with all the required skills and competencies,
Ensure
the affiliated institutions are suitably equipped to render a superior quality of
education and training and quality assurance,
The
project is professionally managed and well organised,
There
is consistent operational performance amongst all affiliated institutions, and
Education
and training efforts are well coordinated and institutions complement each
other.
Financial support
covering all key activities of this university needs to be in place. Annual
budgets need to be developed and funded adequately in line with expected
activities. This university must ensure that it maintains effective control
over strategic, financial, organisational and compliance issues. Performance must
therefore be monitored on a monthly basis through reports, audits and an annual
report. Financial discipline will enable this university to focus on
initiatives aimed at accountability and improvements on performance, whilst
working closely with affiliated institutions to achieve broader goals
efficiently and effectively. The operating activities of this university shall
be focused but not limited to:
Ensuring
that all local institutions within Mthwakazi that are affiliated to the
university must be made to work for (and benefit) the people to whom they
ultimately belong,
Facilitating
the upliftment of the communities in which it operates,
Attracting
private sector investment into the region,
Establishing
a blue print for the management and development of education and training,
Supporting
and assisting in the marketing of local education and training institutions,
Facilitating
the establishment and sustainable
infrastructural investment and logistics for an effective link between
the Mthwakazi nation, regional human resources strategy and skills development
strategies at various localities, and
Extending
accessibility and availability of public learning centres throughout Mthwakazi
country, including those spaces suitable for out of school youth and adults
through E-Learning mechanisms and approaches.
16. Planning Assumptions
The University of Mthwakazi
is a coordinating node for the activities of affiliated institutions:
The
University of Mthwakazi takes ownership of the project to its logical
conclusion,
All
member institutions and stakeholders will
pay an annual membership fee to contribute towards sustaining the activities of
the project,
Additional
funding will be raised through active participation of all stakeholders,
The
University of Mthwakazi as a community vehicle shall be developed in phases,
Annually,
strategic planning sessions shall be conducted to take stock of achievements
and to pave way for future activities,
That
the University of Mthwakazi shall be autonomous from its stakeholders and will only
report on a periodic basis,
That
the board of directors shall be fully responsible and accountable for all the
activities of the project, and that
The
Trustees shall ensure adherence to financial discipline, transparency and
accountability at all times.
17.
University of Mthwakazi: Short Term Courses (Learning Programmes)
It
is important to note that the method of delivering all the listed courses on
Table 17.1 below, in the short to medium term, will be through ONLINE or (E-Education (electronic
education mechanisms). Table 17.1 below provides a list (which is not at
all exhaustive) of a number of short learning courses (programmes) that will be
offered by the University of Mthwakazi through the mechanism of E-Learning (electronic education) as soon as possible . The assessments
of all these programmes will be through tests, examinations, assignments or
practical tests in respect to each of the modules constituting the short
courses/learning programmes. There will be a range of credits linked to
attendance of courses /workshops by the students which shall not be less than
forty (40) hours or less than twelve (12) credits based on South African
Quality Assurance (SAQA) Unit Standards whether or not the time duration per
course module/learning programme exceeds a minimum of forty (40) notional
hours.
The
credit structure per modules shall be determined by the level of difficulty and
challenge of each course or learning programme. Only those students who
successfully complete a short course/learning programme that equals the
attendance duration of forty (40) notional hours or more, or equal to 12 SAQA
based Unit Standards credits shall be awarded a Certificate of Competence.
Table
17.1: University of Mthwakazi - Short Term (Learning Programmes) Courses (6
months – 12 months -24 months)
CERTIFICATES/HIGHER
EDUCATION TRAINING (HET)/FURTHER EDUCATION TRAINING/NATIONAL CERTIFICATE
(VOCATIONAL) |
|
18.1
University of Mthwakazi: Long Term (Learning Programmes) Courses
Just
as with the case of short term courses above, the method of delivery will be by
ONLINE or E-Learning (Electronic
Education). In addition, the list that Table 18.1highlights regarding the long
term courses (learning programmes) is similarly not exhaustive. Assessments are designed to immensely
contribute to quality improvement relative to the quest to meet and fulfil the
needs of the market place, in order to deepen and expand socio-economic
development of society at large. In terms of which both students and
facilitators/presenters are required to take personal responsibility regarding
own high ethical norms, professional quality and standards in fulfilment of
respective duties regarding all long terms courses (learning programmes).
Continuous research, creativeness and innovation improvement shall be encouraged
by the University of Mthwakazi and developed by means of providing ample
training opportunities for both students and facilitators/presenters.
Consistency
rather than standardisation shall at all times be promoted, paying attention to
the concept of quality of presentations
(delivery of education/lectures) by facilitators/presenters and measured by
efficiencies and effectiveness for each module deliverables to
students/candidates in accordance to prescribed evaluation criteria.
Satisfactory academic assessments shall be conducted in terms of written
examinations, written assignments (course work) and examination in respect of
each module constituting the long term learning programme/course.
Credits
awarded shall be benchmarked against international academic standards and
practice. Accreditation with established reputable universities shall
constitute the significant benchmark for the diplomas, undergraduate degrees,
and post graduate degrees right up to doctoral level (Ph.D.) awarded by the
University of Mthwakazi, hence the importance of establishing partnerships.
There will be a range of credits awarded per each course module over a period
not less than one (1) year for the award of a diploma and equally not less than
four (4) years for an undergraduate degree, and further, not less than two (2) years
for the award of a Master degree and not less than three (3) years for a
Ph.D. A total of twenty 20 credits will
therefore be used as a significant measure for the award of an undergraduate
degree and less in accordance to the level of difficulty and challenge for the
award of a diploma.
There
shall be two options for the award of a Master degree which will either take
the form of written examinations and a mini-dissertation, or full dissertation
or thesis with oral (viva voce) examination after submission. The doctorate in philosophy (Ph.D.) will be
assessed in terms of a full thesis that pays attention to four (4) key elements
of research at that level: background theory, focal theory, data theory and original
contribution. Assessment shall therefore be in terms of an oral examination
(viva voce).
Table
18.1: University of Mthwakazi: Long Term (Learning Programmes) Courses (12
months – 48 months)
DIPLOMA/POSTGRADUTE
DIPLOMAS/UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES/MASTER AND DOCTORAL DEGREES |
|
19. Organisational
Information
The university
organisational information is presented below in tabular below in table 19.1.
This organisation (The University of Mthwakazi) intends to influence the
initiation of a structured process of quality improvements at schools where the
local secondary schools, colleges and the local universities are envisaged to
play prominent roles in the future development of the regions. Until today,
students from various marginalised regions could not access the local colleges
and universities, because they came from secondary schools that were not
equipped for the teaching of natural science subjects such as biology, physics,
chemistry and mathematics.
This will now have to
change for the better. In terms of the programme of action, this university
will contribute in the identification and marketing of skills and lobby for the
implementation of appropriate interventions. As can be seen from Table 19.1
below, the team of specialised university researchers will not only take the
lead in the training of individuals on various aspects, but will also present a
course for networking facilitators in the field educational development and
expansion through the innovative delivery ONLINE mechanisms. This university
will also facilitate the introduction of entrepreneurial and financial
management training programmes for contractors and consulting engineers who
undoubtedly will emerge in a post- dictatorial rule Mthwakazi, and beyond.
This University of
Mthwakazi will also establish partnerships with the business sector and assist
unemployed graduates, through the implementation of value-adding and processing
skills development programmes. There are many other programmes that will be
developed by this university, including the business and finance management
skills development programmes, specialist agriculture and mines extension
development programmes and the access to production and marketing skills
programmes. It is important to note that the team of specialist university
researchers possess the intellectual and practical experience in their
respective fields to achieve efficient and effective results.
Below are the contact
details for further information on the University of Mthwakazi (UM) and for any
kind and generous support from individuals and organizations they may lend for
the full establishment of the University.
Contact
Details |
Churchill
Mpiyesizwe Guduza director@universityofmthwakazi.org www.universityofmthwakazi.org chairperson@mthwakazifreedomproject.com www.mthwakazifreedomproject.com Jerold
Sibanyoni 69
Leyswoood Drive Newbury
Park Ilford Essex
IG2 7JL United
Kingdom +44
742 763 4604 director@universityofmthwakazi.org solo3Jer@yahoo.co.uk |