2016-04-29Staff Report 2 "Ongwediva Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has expressed government’s commitment to ensure graduates in the country are absorbed into the labour market. Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, who was speaking at the graduation ceremony of 559 students in Ongwediva, said an ad-hoc ministerial committee was recently established to investigate barriers to graduates finding suitable jobs and to facilitate the absorption of graduates in the labour market. The ceremony for the University of Namibia northern campuses was held yesterday. The graduates were from Hifikepunye Pohamba, Oshakati, Jose Eduardo and Ogongo campuses. The committee is also set to investigate issues of employers requiring candidates to have experience on top of the required academic qualifications. “The committee has broad terms of reference, including among others, to make recommendations on providing exposure to graduates through internships, job attachments and cadetships before entering the labour market,” Kuugongelwa-Amadhila said. In the same vein Kuugongelwa-Amadhila also discouraged graduates from flocking to Windhoek in search of jobs, saying that the rural areas and the poor and neglected communities also need the skills the graduates have just acquired. “Therefore, start small and serve your communities through local job opportunities even though these may not be on the level that you hoped for, but at least it is a beginning,” she said. While there may be fewer available jobs as a result of the ongoing lacklustre performance of the global and local economies, the prime minister advised graduates to be observant for new opportunities. She also applauded Unam for its commitment to address societal and socio-economic challenges through research at the institution. She singled out the university’s research committee to address food security and the plan to eliminate malaria in parts of the north-central regions and the Zambezi Region by 2030, as some of the university’s successes. " 2016-04-29Staff Report 2
