News / National
Mugabe caps 1 063 at GZU
01 Nov 2014 at 11:13hrs | Views
President Mugabe yesterday conferred degrees on 1 063 graduates, including veteran musician Oliver Mtukudzi who received an honorary degree, at Great Zimbabwe University's eighth graduation ceremony in Masvingo.
Of these 929 successfully completed their undergraduate studies, while 134 were awarded Masters Degrees.
Mtukudzi was confered with an Honorary Doctor of Ethnomusicology and Choreography in the Faculty of Culture and Heritage Studies, while the rest of the graduates were drawn from six faculties of Arts, Education, Social Sciences, Commerce, Agriculture and Natural Sciences.
In his citation on the conferment of the honorary doctorate on Mtukudzi, the Dean of the Faculty of Culture and Heritage Studies Dr William Zivenge said the musician's music had evolved from the use of modern electrical instruments to the use of African instruments such as mbira and marimba.
He said Tuku's devout use of African instruments, was an indication that the musician wanted to preserve African culture, heritage and creative arts.
In his acceptance speech, an overwhelmed Tuku, who was accompanied by his wife Daisy, said music gave hope and faith to people even in the face of seemingly insurmountable adversity.
"I am deeply moved and I never thought (that) whatever I was doing everyday was being noticed by some people," he said.
"I never thought such a thing could happen in my life.''
Two graduates received their degrees posthumously and one of them was the late national hero and former 3 Brigade Commander Brigadier General Elias Bandama, who was supposed to graduate with a Master of Business Administration specialising in Human Resources Management.
In his address, Great Zimbabwe University Vice Chancellor Professor Rungano Zvobgo said 46 percent of the graduates were female, adding that 40 percent of those awarded Masters Degrees were also female.
Prof Zvobgo said the GZU was poised for further growth after the Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education approved teaching of 14 new undergraduate and Masters programmes, beginning this academic year.
"In the sphere of curriculum development, the university has witnessed a real transformation," he said.
"This is in direct response to Government's directive that every university pursues a particular niche.
"We aim to contribute to the decolonisation of the history of our continent for the benefit of Africans and to inspire those who are still laden with the baggages of mental slavery to liberate themselves," said Prof Zvobgo.
Of these 929 successfully completed their undergraduate studies, while 134 were awarded Masters Degrees.
Mtukudzi was confered with an Honorary Doctor of Ethnomusicology and Choreography in the Faculty of Culture and Heritage Studies, while the rest of the graduates were drawn from six faculties of Arts, Education, Social Sciences, Commerce, Agriculture and Natural Sciences.
In his citation on the conferment of the honorary doctorate on Mtukudzi, the Dean of the Faculty of Culture and Heritage Studies Dr William Zivenge said the musician's music had evolved from the use of modern electrical instruments to the use of African instruments such as mbira and marimba.
He said Tuku's devout use of African instruments, was an indication that the musician wanted to preserve African culture, heritage and creative arts.
In his acceptance speech, an overwhelmed Tuku, who was accompanied by his wife Daisy, said music gave hope and faith to people even in the face of seemingly insurmountable adversity.
"I am deeply moved and I never thought (that) whatever I was doing everyday was being noticed by some people," he said.
Two graduates received their degrees posthumously and one of them was the late national hero and former 3 Brigade Commander Brigadier General Elias Bandama, who was supposed to graduate with a Master of Business Administration specialising in Human Resources Management.
In his address, Great Zimbabwe University Vice Chancellor Professor Rungano Zvobgo said 46 percent of the graduates were female, adding that 40 percent of those awarded Masters Degrees were also female.
Prof Zvobgo said the GZU was poised for further growth after the Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education approved teaching of 14 new undergraduate and Masters programmes, beginning this academic year.
"In the sphere of curriculum development, the university has witnessed a real transformation," he said.
"This is in direct response to Government's directive that every university pursues a particular niche.
"We aim to contribute to the decolonisation of the history of our continent for the benefit of Africans and to inspire those who are still laden with the baggages of mental slavery to liberate themselves," said Prof Zvobgo.
Source - The Herald
