By Frederick Philander WINDHOEK Because education is the foundation of success, students need to develop confidence in their own abilities in innovative ways as well as the abilities of the rest of the citizenry. Dr Tjama Tjivikua said this yesterday at the official opening of the academic year of the Polytechnic of Namibia. Hundreds of students and invited guests attended the open-air event at the institution’s campus. “You are beneficiaries of past gains and we expect nothing but hard work and achievement from you. So many other Namibian young men and women could not qualify or acquire the resources to enter into higher education. Thus, this is a unique opportunity for you to use it wisely and succeed,” Tjivikua said. He expressed optimism about the future of Namibian students at his educational institution. “I am very excited about the future because there are endless opportunities to bring prosperity to our people. But the opportunities will not just arrive by themselves – we must do more and much more to benefit from thinking, knowledge and planning. “This is why we have agreed on the motto: ‘Innovation for a Knowledge-Based Economy’. This means we must have creative applications of old or new knowledge, methods and techniques to bring about change, modernization and general improvement of existing methods, products, services and techniques. “We need to accept that global interaction is here to stay in Namibia, in Africa and everywhere,” the rector warned. The managing director of Nedloans (Pty) Ltd, Nangula Hamunyela, a guest speaker, praised the Polytechnic of Namibia’s innovative and proactive approach to education, its achievements and vision. “I applaud the Polytechnic for accomplishing so much in such a short time, yet, many challenges lie ahead. “Competition for our university students is escalating as new institutions offer ‘just-in-time’ education in places; on-line degrees at low costs to students are proliferating, while the costs to students of our traditional degrees continue to rise and administrators are pressed for time as their responsibilities expand. I am fully aware that with any initiative, problems must be faced and barriers overcome,” Hamunyela said.