WINDHOEK – Scores of Namibians who benefited from the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation Programme (ITEC) last Friday marked one of the most successful south-south training programmes.
The auspicious event was graced by the Indian High Commissioner to Namibia, Prashant Agrawal, the Minister of Higher Education, Training and Innovation, Dr Itah Kandji-Murangi and the Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Christine Hoebes among a host of other senior government officials.
Speaking at the event hosted on Friday at a hotel in Windhoek where there was a large female presence, the Indian high commissioner noted: “Today we also celebrate the International Women’s Day. We celebrate the achievements of all women.”
“We celebrate the achievements of all women – the true architects of our societies. As Margret Thatcher (former British prime minister) once said, “If you want something said ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman”.
He referred to the two ministers’ presence at the event as being inspirational to young girls and boys. Agrawal said, “Incidentally, out of curiosity, I checked about the ITEC alumni present today, and found that 55 percent of them are women.”
On the number of Namibian women who have attended ITEC, the high commissioner said 57 percent of those selected this year for the highly-acclaimed Indian training programme are women, which is “something we are all very proud of.”
Since the highly-acclaimed training programme was incepted, more than 1100 Namibians from diverse professional spheres and from various government ministries and SOEs have benefitted from this technical and theoretical programme.
Officials from the Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation will soon depart for India for a specialised course at the country’s Foreign Service Institute.
ITEC alumni from Namibia shared their pleasant experiences on the nature of the courses they attended in India and how beneficial this training programme was.
ITEC courses are demand-driven and it also has special programmes that are customised for the specific training needs at the request of African governments. And as India positions itself for future training needs it also offers courses in artificial intelligence, Nano technology, solar energy and forensics. ITEC courses that cover professional spheres from agriculture, food and fertiliser, banking, finance, accounts and auditing, journalism, governance and health are both short-term and long-term.
All ITEC courses are fully funded scholarship programmes by the Indian government that bears the cost of international travel course fees, accommodation, books, medical expenses and it pays for all the incidental expenses.