ࡱ> CEB k)bjbjS>S> 4B1T_1T_k!<<L.JJJJJ%%%moooooo$L%%%%%JJ---%JJm-%m---/z-Y0-L--,%%-%%%%%L%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%<X : VICE CHANCELLORS 68TH GRADUATION SPEECH The Chancellor of the ż, Dr.Vijoo Rattansi, Principal Secretary, Basic Education, Dr. Belio Kipsang, Chair of Council, Prof. Miriam Were, Excellences the Ambassadors and High Commissioners, Council Members, Mr. Isaac Awuondo, Chairman of ż Alumni Association. All the graduands here present and online- Our online audience, All the stakeholders, Distinguished Ladies and gentlemen. Madam Chancellor This is the second graduation this year. You were here in September where you conferred degrees to 3552 graduands. Today the senate will shortly be presenting to you an additional 6640 graduands. This brings to a total of 10,297 graduands this academic year. This is not a mean achievement. It has taken teamwork from all our staff at university of ż and stakeholders who continue to hold our hand as we carry out this nobel duty. Madam chancellor, I want to congratulate all the 6,640 graduands of 68th Congregation for writing their own history today. Graduating with a degree or diploma from the ż is an achievement that is worthy of celebrating. You are going out there to pursue your dreams and chart own path. In the words of Ellen Degeneres- Never follow anyone else path, unless you are in the woods and you are lost and you see a path and by all means you should follow that. The 68th graduation is the culmination of a successful academic calendar and I want to thank all staff and students for making it possible-without interruptions. It is a mark of academic discipline and maturity. It is my conviction that if we continue pulling together, we shall make this University great. We shall take it where it ought to be A vibrant, viable, resilient and sustainable university. Ladies and gentlemen, Today as we celebrate the graduands, I also want to appreciate the faculty and staff who worked tirelessly to keep the university running. The council and the management acknowledge the wonderful job that you do. We recently recognized and awarded prizes to 350 staff for excellent service. We appreciate that Staff or Human resource is the most important factor of production. After many years, we have also started to review and consider a number of cadres for promotions. In the current financial year we have promoted all qualified tutorial fellows and graduate assistants to lecturers! We have promoted KUDHEHIA members who had stagnated in one grade for more than 9 years. In Public sector performance evaluation, the ż has consistently registered an excellent score since 2005 when we adopted the performance management system. We have maintained the top spot on the delivery of core mandate indicator among the public sector agencies. Talking about the best University, we were the top ranked university in East Africa by the Times Higher Education, Webometrics and QS rankings. We won the best university stand and scooped several prizes in this years National International show. The footprints of our impressive performance can be found in all spheres! Be it academics, research and community service. To enhance research activities, and to showcase research and innovations- The University held the 5th annual research week where 492 research papers and articles were presented. To encourage a culture of innovation, knowledge transfer and commercialization, the ż organized the 6th Innovation week that attracted a total of 71 innovators and 49 exhibitors from across the globe. We are optimistic that in the near future we shall start churning out small companies to the market after incubation. Madam Chancellor, The Universitys profile has grown exponentially and we continue to attract strategic partners and collaborations that add value to the University brand. We are the only University in Africa that has been chosen by the leading University in Finland, Helsinki for a strategic global collaboration covering flagship programs like Health, Education, Climate Change, Engineering teaching and research. I thank the Rector of Helsinki University who recently led a delegation of 23 scholars to ż to deepen that partnership. We were also recently selected by the Carnegie Melon foundation to be part of the African Engineering and Technology ( Afretec) network - a consortium of 10 most influential universities in Africa that will drive inclusive digital growth in the continent and work together to build engineering and technology capacity in education, knowledge creation and entrepreneurship. We have established a global partnership with the Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA) to accelerate climate adaptation in Africa. In June this year the GCA granted 140 million US Dollars to the institute of Climate Change and adaptation for research and supporting climate innovations among the youth and women, and community adaptations. We have also deepened our collaboration with the Gates Foundation to strengthen regional capacity to respond to epidemics through data analysis and modeling at the Centre of Epidemiological modeling and Analysis (CEMA). I thank the Gates Foundation through Mr. Bill Gates, the Chair of Gates foundation for coming here specifically to appreciate and support the good work that our researchers (Dr.Loise Ombajo and Prof. Thumbi Mwangi) are doing. We also thank him for his donation of 5milion US dollars grant to CEMA-a research centre of excellence hosted at our faculty of health sciences. Our impetus in research is to achieve outstanding outcomes in addressing the needs of the community. As you are all aware, cancer has become one of the greatest national health problem .To support the governments effort in finding treatment for cancer, the ż also signed a partnership agreement with Rhone Pharmaceuticals to support Cancer Research at our UNITD Institute. We are now the only university that trains oncologists in Kenya. We are training more oncologists to achieve a critical mass of in order to reduce the cost of cancer treatment and to save our people from seeking treatment in India. Ladies and gentlemen, The ż has got talents! A strong education institution must support dreams and aspirations of its students by creating safe spaces for exercising their rights and freedoms; and for harnessing talents. Working together with UNESCO, UN WOMEN and other stakeholders, the university of ż has established the first Gender Based Violence (GBV) recovery centre inside a university in the region to support survivors of GBV. In line with our value for care, we offer free support to students whenever they are confronted with health and social challenges like mental health, drugs and substance abuse. We believe that the students are our primary stakeholders and that they deserve to be treated humanely. We commit to provide a rich campus experience to all our students. While studying at the university, many students get the opportunity for international exchange and get transformed to global citizens that are ready to solve global problems. Madam Chancellor, We have created a new democratic culture in campus characterized by tolerance and respect for diversity. A culture that promotes academic excellence! That creates stability and is suitable for pursuit of personal and organizational growth. We are proud that we are now able to conduct competitive Deanship and student elections peacefully and in a respectable way. We have learned that the leaders that emerge from such a process are respected! They are responsible and are accountable. As I conclude, I want to emphasize that we shall continue with the reforms and re-engineering of our business processes. So long as they increase our productivity and enhance efficiency in service delivery, we shall not retract. Nicolo Machieveli-In his instruction manual to Italian heads of state in the renaissance period had this to say about reforms: There is nothing more difficult to carry out, more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all who profit from the old order, and only lukewarm defenders in those who would benefit from the new. We know that it can be noisy and nasty, but we shall soldier on until we succeed. I thank you for your enormous support and take this early opportunity to wish everybody a merry Christmas. PROF.STEPHEN KIAMA GITAHI, PhD. VICE CHANCELLOR. 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