Date: 27/11/2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Asmal: Transformation & restructuring of higher education, NA
STATEMENT ON THE TRANSFORMATION AND RESTRUCTURING OF HIGHER EDUCATION BY THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION, PROFESSOR KADER ASMAL, MP, National Assembly, Thursday, 27 November 2003
Madam Speaker
You will recollect that I made a promise to this House some while ago that I would report to you on the implementation of this government's programme for the transformation of higher education. I am therefore before you this afternoon to meet the undertaking that I made.
I can think of few better ways to end an eventful but very productive year than to inform you of the significant progress that we are making towards the realisation of our goal of a transformed higher education system that the nation can truly own and be proud of.
It would not be an exaggeration to claim that we are making history. Indeed, we are on the eve of the birth of four new institutions, which will be established through the merger of existing institutions on 1 January 2004. These are:
* The University of KwaZulu-Natal - through merger of the University of Natal and the University of Durban Westville
* The North West University - through merger of the University of Potchefstroom and the University of the North West
* The Tshwane University of Technology - through merger of Pretoria Technikon, Technikon Northern Gauteng and Technikon North West
* The new Unisa - through merger of Unisa, TSA and the Vudec component of Vista University
In January 2005, five more new institutions will be established - the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, the University of Johannesburg, the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, the University of Limpopo and the Walter Sisulu University for Technology and Science, Eastern Cape.
Madam Speaker, there can be no doubt that the higher education landscape is well on its way to reflecting the values, ethos and aspirations of our democracy, away from the false divisions of the apartheid past, which have for too long scarred our higher education system and limited its ability to truly respond to the current and future needs of our country.
These new beginnings that we are witnessing and are indeed a part of are possible because of the commitment of this government to building an efficient, effective and equitable higher education system that is able to meet the country's needs in terms of high level human resources, including the professionals needed to drive key sectors of our economy and those who will support the provision of social, health and education services to improve the quality of life for all of our citizens. The new system will also nurture the coming generations of intellectuals, especially black and women researchers and scholars, who should play a critically important role in the maturing of our democracy.
Let me assure you that our commitment to a new vision for higher education is matched by the resources necessary for implementation. You may recall the recent Mid-Term Budget Statement of the Minister of Finance, a few days ago, in which he reiterated the government's commitment to fund the institutional reconstruction of the system. Madam Speaker, R3 billion will be invested in this process over the next three to five years. This is an investment in the coming generations of students and staff who will benefit from higher education. Equally, it is an investment in the future social, economic and political well being of our country. I would like to thank my colleague Minister Manuel and his department for their confidence in our ability and capacity to restructure and reshape our universities and technikons.
The transformation of higher education has been long in the making. Since the early 1990s, many studies, commissions and inquiries have informed our thinking.
Indeed, here I need to single out the African National Congress, which nearly ten years ago, with remarkable prescience in the midst of struggle, invoked an extraordinary document entitled 'A Policy Framework for Education and Training' or as it is affectionately termed the 'Yellow Book', which has guided our efforts in transforming our education system. In the context of higher education it called on us to transform the system through the development of a policy, and I quote 'aimed at economic growth, the enhancement of a democratic political system, and promotion of the cultural and intellectual life of a society'. As I mentioned earlier, this is precisely what we are trying to achieve.
I would like to express my deep appreciation to the many men and women who have contributed to the rich body of work that has shaped our change agenda.
It would also be remiss of me if I did not acknowledge the role played by generations of student and staff activists whose struggles and sacrifices have helped us to achieve our dreams. Let us remember the martyrs of 1976, the students who lost their lives in the campus strife during the dark days of the 1980s, the cadres of the National Education Coordinating Committee (NECC), as well as the leadership and rank and file of national student organisations such as the South African Students' Organisation (SASO), the Azanian Student Organisation (AZASO), the National Union of South African Students (NUSAS), the South African National Students' Congress (SANSCO) and the South African Students' Congress (SASCO). I am also reminded of the tragic and untimely death of Dr Kgomotso Masebe-Langa, the first Secretary General of SASCO, who was gunned down only days ago.
Great patriots, such as Jack Simon, Roy Hoffenberg, Rick Turner and David Webster, who fought for academic freedom, will always be remembered for their tremendous contributions.
Closer to this house, the role of the Portfolio Committee on Education must be acknowledged. The Committee, under the exceptional leadership of Dr Blade Nzimande, laid the policy and legislative foundation for the post 1994 transformation of higher education.
Madam Speaker the transformation of our higher education system has been and will continue to be an extremely challenging task. It is one that requires us to balance different interests and needs. However, I can confidently say that it is informed by a set of principles that are articulated in the White Paper of 1997: A Programme for the Transformation of Higher Education and these are not negotiable.
Amongst these principles are a commitment to equity and redress, democratisation, development, quality, effectiveness and efficiency, academic freedom and public accountability.
The very ways in which we give effect to these principles has shaped the unfolding of the new system. It is a higher education system that is rooted in the realities of our society. Put differently it is a higher education system for South Africa and of South Africa. It has been suggested by Malegapuru Makgoba and Sipho Seepe, "the central issue for our universities today is an institutional transformation in higher education that will provide for the production of knowledge that recognizes the African condition as historical and defines its key task as one of coming to grips with it critically".
It is my vision that all of our universities should be responsive to, and embracing of, the national reconstruction and development agenda, through their core work of teaching and research. This approach enjoys wide support both locally and internationally. As stated in the Executive Summary of the Association of Commonwealth Universities consultation document, Engagement as a Core Value for the University (April 2001):
"The world depends increasingly on universities for knowledge, prosperity, health and policy-thinking. Universities are thus required to become engines of development for people, institutions and democracy in general. Engagement defines the whole orientation and tone of a university's policy and practice. Mission-statements, strategic planning, teaching-and-learning policies and research directions must evince and encourage active respect for the concerns and challenges faced by society".
Such critical engagement between universities and the societies within which they are located hardly translates into subservience of the academy to either the market or to national political agendas as some analysts seem to suggest.
Madam Speaker, let us be clear that there will continue to be space in our higher education institutions for all forms of inquiry, including so-called 'pure' and applied research, and teaching and learning in the full spectrum of academic as well as career focused disciplines and fields. We are committed to promoting diversity in the institutional arrangements in higher education and will not be bullied into uniform and one-dimensional perspectives of what constitutes a university.
A hallmark of the new system should, however, be a commitment to quality in every aspect of the academic project - be it teaching, research, community service or in the administration, management and governance of universities. We simply cannot afford to be complacent when it comes to quality. Our students deserve the very best that the country can afford and should be given the opportunity to grow through a quality higher education experience, which should not be marred by prejudice or poverty.
There is much that government can do to provide the policy and legislative frameworks for transformation in higher education. We can also endeavour to resource properly the sector and to put into place the planning and quality assurance mechanisms required to steer the system. However, much of the outcomes will be shaped and determined by the leadership of our higher education institutions. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to report that the vice-chancellors of most of our universities have embraced the challenges of transformation with much enthusiasm, energy and insight. I am most grateful for their commitment and support in this period of transition.
In conclusion, I would like to thank you for the privilege of briefing you this afternoon on an area of education which I know is of considerable interest to this House. However, for those of you, who think that everything is now settled, let me leave you with the powerful words of Nigerian poet Ben Okri who reminds us that:
They are only the exhausted who think
That they have arrived
At the final destination
The end of their road
With all of their dreams achieved
And no new dreams to hold
I thank you
Issued by: Ministry of Education
27 November 2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Asmal: Transformation & restructuring of higher education, NA
STATEMENT ON THE TRANSFORMATION AND RESTRUCTURING OF HIGHER EDUCATION BY THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION, PROFESSOR KADER ASMAL, MP, National Assembly, Thursday, 27 November 2003
Madam Speaker
You will recollect that I made a promise to this House some while ago that I would report to you on the implementation of this government's programme for the transformation of higher education. I am therefore before you this afternoon to meet the undertaking that I made.
I can think of few better ways to end an eventful but very productive year than to inform you of the significant progress that we are making towards the realisation of our goal of a transformed higher education system that the nation can truly own and be proud of.
It would not be an exaggeration to claim that we are making history. Indeed, we are on the eve of the birth of four new institutions, which will be established through the merger of existing institutions on 1 January 2004. These are:
* The University of KwaZulu-Natal - through merger of the University of Natal and the University of Durban Westville
* The North West University - through merger of the University of Potchefstroom and the University of the North West
* The Tshwane University of Technology - through merger of Pretoria Technikon, Technikon Northern Gauteng and Technikon North West
* The new Unisa - through merger of Unisa, TSA and the Vudec component of Vista University
In January 2005, five more new institutions will be established - the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, the University of Johannesburg, the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, the University of Limpopo and the Walter Sisulu University for Technology and Science, Eastern Cape.
Madam Speaker, there can be no doubt that the higher education landscape is well on its way to reflecting the values, ethos and aspirations of our democracy, away from the false divisions of the apartheid past, which have for too long scarred our higher education system and limited its ability to truly respond to the current and future needs of our country.
These new beginnings that we are witnessing and are indeed a part of are possible because of the commitment of this government to building an efficient, effective and equitable higher education system that is able to meet the country's needs in terms of high level human resources, including the professionals needed to drive key sectors of our economy and those who will support the provision of social, health and education services to improve the quality of life for all of our citizens. The new system will also nurture the coming generations of intellectuals, especially black and women researchers and scholars, who should play a critically important role in the maturing of our democracy.
Let me assure you that our commitment to a new vision for higher education is matched by the resources necessary for implementation. You may recall the recent Mid-Term Budget Statement of the Minister of Finance, a few days ago, in which he reiterated the government's commitment to fund the institutional reconstruction of the system. Madam Speaker, R3 billion will be invested in this process over the next three to five years. This is an investment in the coming generations of students and staff who will benefit from higher education. Equally, it is an investment in the future social, economic and political well being of our country. I would like to thank my colleague Minister Manuel and his department for their confidence in our ability and capacity to restructure and reshape our universities and technikons.
The transformation of higher education has been long in the making. Since the early 1990s, many studies, commissions and inquiries have informed our thinking.
Indeed, here I need to single out the African National Congress, which nearly ten years ago, with remarkable prescience in the midst of struggle, invoked an extraordinary document entitled 'A Policy Framework for Education and Training' or as it is affectionately termed the 'Yellow Book', which has guided our efforts in transforming our education system. In the context of higher education it called on us to transform the system through the development of a policy, and I quote 'aimed at economic growth, the enhancement of a democratic political system, and promotion of the cultural and intellectual life of a society'. As I mentioned earlier, this is precisely what we are trying to achieve.
I would like to express my deep appreciation to the many men and women who have contributed to the rich body of work that has shaped our change agenda.
It would also be remiss of me if I did not acknowledge the role played by generations of student and staff activists whose struggles and sacrifices have helped us to achieve our dreams. Let us remember the martyrs of 1976, the students who lost their lives in the campus strife during the dark days of the 1980s, the cadres of the National Education Coordinating Committee (NECC), as well as the leadership and rank and file of national student organisations such as the South African Students' Organisation (SASO), the Azanian Student Organisation (AZASO), the National Union of South African Students (NUSAS), the South African National Students' Congress (SANSCO) and the South African Students' Congress (SASCO). I am also reminded of the tragic and untimely death of Dr Kgomotso Masebe-Langa, the first Secretary General of SASCO, who was gunned down only days ago.
Great patriots, such as Jack Simon, Roy Hoffenberg, Rick Turner and David Webster, who fought for academic freedom, will always be remembered for their tremendous contributions.
Closer to this house, the role of the Portfolio Committee on Education must be acknowledged. The Committee, under the exceptional leadership of Dr Blade Nzimande, laid the policy and legislative foundation for the post 1994 transformation of higher education.
Madam Speaker the transformation of our higher education system has been and will continue to be an extremely challenging task. It is one that requires us to balance different interests and needs. However, I can confidently say that it is informed by a set of principles that are articulated in the White Paper of 1997: A Programme for the Transformation of Higher Education and these are not negotiable.
Amongst these principles are a commitment to equity and redress, democratisation, development, quality, effectiveness and efficiency, academic freedom and public accountability.
The very ways in which we give effect to these principles has shaped the unfolding of the new system. It is a higher education system that is rooted in the realities of our society. Put differently it is a higher education system for South Africa and of South Africa. It has been suggested by Malegapuru Makgoba and Sipho Seepe, "the central issue for our universities today is an institutional transformation in higher education that will provide for the production of knowledge that recognizes the African condition as historical and defines its key task as one of coming to grips with it critically".
It is my vision that all of our universities should be responsive to, and embracing of, the national reconstruction and development agenda, through their core work of teaching and research. This approach enjoys wide support both locally and internationally. As stated in the Executive Summary of the Association of Commonwealth Universities consultation document, Engagement as a Core Value for the University (April 2001):
"The world depends increasingly on universities for knowledge, prosperity, health and policy-thinking. Universities are thus required to become engines of development for people, institutions and democracy in general. Engagement defines the whole orientation and tone of a university's policy and practice. Mission-statements, strategic planning, teaching-and-learning policies and research directions must evince and encourage active respect for the concerns and challenges faced by society".
Such critical engagement between universities and the societies within which they are located hardly translates into subservience of the academy to either the market or to national political agendas as some analysts seem to suggest.
Madam Speaker, let us be clear that there will continue to be space in our higher education institutions for all forms of inquiry, including so-called 'pure' and applied research, and teaching and learning in the full spectrum of academic as well as career focused disciplines and fields. We are committed to promoting diversity in the institutional arrangements in higher education and will not be bullied into uniform and one-dimensional perspectives of what constitutes a university.
A hallmark of the new system should, however, be a commitment to quality in every aspect of the academic project - be it teaching, research, community service or in the administration, management and governance of universities. We simply cannot afford to be complacent when it comes to quality. Our students deserve the very best that the country can afford and should be given the opportunity to grow through a quality higher education experience, which should not be marred by prejudice or poverty.
There is much that government can do to provide the policy and legislative frameworks for transformation in higher education. We can also endeavour to resource properly the sector and to put into place the planning and quality assurance mechanisms required to steer the system. However, much of the outcomes will be shaped and determined by the leadership of our higher education institutions. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to report that the vice-chancellors of most of our universities have embraced the challenges of transformation with much enthusiasm, energy and insight. I am most grateful for their commitment and support in this period of transition.
In conclusion, I would like to thank you for the privilege of briefing you this afternoon on an area of education which I know is of considerable interest to this House. However, for those of you, who think that everything is now settled, let me leave you with the powerful words of Nigerian poet Ben Okri who reminds us that:
They are only the exhausted who think
That they have arrived
At the final destination
The end of their road
With all of their dreams achieved
And no new dreams to hold
I thank you
Issued by: Ministry of Education
27 November 2003
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