Unisa @ 150: Minister Pandor to speak at Ethiopian celebration

The South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, the Honourable Dr Naledi Pandor, will deliver a lecture in celebration of the 150^th anniversary of Unisa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Monday, 31 July 2023.

Dr Naledi Pandor, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation (File photo)

Also delivering speeches on the occasion of the lecture will be the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Unisa, Professor Puleng LenkaBula, and the Ethiopian Minister of Education, Dr Bernahu Nega.

The lecture, to be premised on the topic Science Diplomacy (and Innovation) in the Reclaiming of Africa’s Intellectual Futures into the next 150 Years, is organised jointly by Unisa and the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), through the Embassy of the Republic of South Africa in Ethiopia. It will underscore Unisa’s commitment to the renaissance of the continent and its pride as an African university and will, among others, seek to advance the following goals:

• Supporting the objectives of the African Union’s (AU’s) Education, Science, Technology and Innovation Department, which coordinates the AU programmes on human resources development, education, science and technology and promote the youth development agenda
• Encouraging scholarship and thought leadership on the impact of shifting global geopolitics on the African continent and how to reposition the continent for the future
• Supporting the Ten Catalytic Niche Areas of Unisa, championed by the Principal and Vice-Chancellor, with the aim of activating and enhancing the academic agenda
• Promoting Unisa as a thought leader on continental issues, including innovation in the higher education sector, the changing global geopolitics and benefits of eLearning modalities to meet the knowledge production needs of the continent
• Promoting intra-Africa knowledge production and knowledge-sharing
• Promoting science diplomacy  

Unisa’s vision demonstrates its pride in its African roots and identity as it responds to Africa’s needs and aspirations nationally, on the continent and on the global scene. This is the milieu that holds the anchor, ethos and vision of the Unisa-Ethiopia Regional Learning Centre, which was inaugurated in January 2007 as a practical manifestation of Unisa’s vision outside the borders of the Republic of South Africa.

Hinged on the South-South paradigm of operation between South Africa and Ethiopia, Unisa began operating in Ethiopia with the sole mandate to assist the Ethiopian Government in human capital development in the sphere of education.

Date:                31 July 2023

Time:               16:00 South African time, 17:00 Ethiopian time

Platform:          Please click here to connect to Livestreaming on Unisa YouTube

#Unisa150

* Compiled by the Department of Institutional Advancement