By Nevaji Munyaradzi Chiondegwa
Harare – President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe has called on the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to embrace research, science, technology, and innovation (RSTI) as the key to achieving a sustainable industrialized economy.
Delivering the 7th SADC Public Lecture ahead of the 44th Ordinary Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government in Harare, President Mnangagwa emphasized the need for a paradigm shift in education to drive regional development.
“The theme of this Lecture; “Building Research Capacity and Innovation Ecosystems for a Sustainable Industrialised SADC Economy”, is an apt call to action and encapsulates the need for new paradigms of education to leap frog the modernisation, industrialisation and wholistic development of SADC,” he stated.
He highlighted the challenges facing the region, including climate change, pandemics, and global economic shifts, and stressed the need for SADC to position itself strategically to convert these challenges into opportunities.
“We have a duty to boldly and proactively address enclaves of disproportionate socio-economic development. The region should never play second fiddle in the arena of international economic relations,” he said.
President Mnangagwa emphasized the importance of leveraging SADC’s combined resources and human capacity to become a competitive economic bloc capable of producing a wide range of goods and services.
He also highlighted the need to transform education systems to produce innovators and industrialists equipped with the skills and competencies to meet the needs of the region.
“As long as the education system in our region remains skewed towards the past colonial architecture, it cannot adequately leap-frog the industrialisation of SADC,” he said.
President Mnangagwa cited Zimbabwe’s Heritage-Based Education 5.0 philosophy as an example of a transformative education system that embraces research, innovation, and industrialization. He pointed to the success of this philosophy in fostering innovation and the emergence of new technologies and start-up companies in Zimbabwe.
“This transformative education system has started to bear fruit. We have seen the emergence of various innovations and patents as new forms of assets,” he said.
President Mnangagwa concluded his address by urging SADC member states to re-purpose their human capital and optimize production and productivity specialization, anchored on the right education philosophy and configuration.
“The future of SADC is in our hands,” he declared.
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