GEM Sites Bi-Weekly Updates
July 28th - August 07th 2024
Kenya
Students who will join university this year have been asked not to pay fees until the categorisation process is completed.
Higher Education Principal Secretary, Dr Beatrice Inyangala, said the students will only pay fees after the process to establish their exact level of need, in line with the higher education funding model is established.Dr Inyangala explained that the amount universities communicated was the full cost of the programme and not the school fees they will be required to pay. She said once students have completed the application, the government will establish the level of need.
The first time Perina Lokure Nakang began to run for sport, she ran 9 miles (14 kilometers) along the road near her refugee camp in northwestern Kenya. Now, the 21-year-old South Sudanese runner is competing in the Paris Olympics, among many of the 37 athletes on the Olympic refugee team who are pushing to see more refugees like her able to compete in the Games. “I told myself if I continue running this, it is going to change my life,” she said. “In the Olympics, everyone is looking to me to represent them.” They are getting support from former refugee Olympians and U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, who told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday that the team is “a symbol of inclusion, of equality, of achievement for a large community around the world of refugees and displaced people."
One of the most interesting grammatical elements of Kiswahili, the most widely spoken African language in the world, is that you can always create the negative form of an infinitive verb. In English, to be grammatically correct, the opposite of a verb has to have some kind of meaning in the real world. For example, the opposite of “to live” is “to die”. This element of Kiswahili grammar offers a powerful framework for thinking through the events in Kenya in June and July, a sequence of events that I call “ungoverning”. If governing is developing rules and using institutions in order to create a functional society, then Kenya is living through a period of ungoverning, in which institutions and rules are being undermined by the state itself, by extension undermining the society as a whole. After the president and the legislature attempted to force through a finance bill in Parliament, Kenya entered an unprecedented wave of protest and an unprecedented violent wave of policing. While protesters insist that they are peaceful, particularly in the capital city of Nairobi, the police behave as if the very act of gathering is an affront to the executive that must be met with maximum force.
Lebanon
Several countries have renewed or revised travel warnings for Lebanon and Israel, urging their citizens to leave as soon as possible.
The updated recommendations – including from France and the US – come as Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah stand on the brink of a large-scale war, days after a senior commander in the group was killed in Beirut and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. There are fears an Israeli attack could be significantly more damaging in the coming days, as both sides raise the stakes in a tit-for-tat exchange of fire that began on October 8. On Sunday morning, Israeli media reported about 50 rockets were launched at northern Israel overnight.
Dependants of internationally recruited UN staff in Lebanon are being evacuated from the country until further notice amid fears of further regional escalations. The UN's security team announced the decision in a communique on Thursday, following a review the day before.
The communique, seen by The National, said there would be an “implementation of 'family restrictions' for internationally recruited staff until further notice, subject to periodic assessment”. It is understood that the phrase “family restrictions” is UN language for the evacuation of dependants. Evacuations are planned to begin as soon as possible, starting on Friday. It is the first time since hostilities broke out on the Lebanese border with Israel on October 8 that dependants of international UN staff have been evacuated from Lebanon.
South Africa
The Formula Student Africa (FSA) team at the University of Cape Town (UCT) unveiled their ambitious project on 30 July in the Menzies building on UCT’s upper campus. FSA extends the global Formula Student initiative, challenging university students to design and build electric formula-style race cars. FSA UCT, in particular, emphasises innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and sustainability among African students.FSA UCT’s mission is to “design, build, and race the best-performing E-Formula student car from scratch”. Their vision aligns with this mission, aiming to “promote technical prowess, project management, teamwork, and entrepreneurship skills, contributing to the global drive for eco-friendly automotive solutions”. The Department of Electrical Engineering at UCT plays a pivotal role in supporting the FSA UCT project. It provides the resources necessary for students to explore innovative solutions and refine their engineering designs
Rwanda
In the serene neighborhood of Kiyovu in Kigali, a young man in his early 20s sits in front of his laptop, deep in concentration. His fingers move rapidly over the keyboard, the clicking sounds creating a steady rhythm in the otherwise silent space.
This is Manzi Mudahemuka, a software engineer, who is busy doing what he loves most: coding. He is fully committed to programming, not only to secure a brighter future for himself but also to find solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues.
The 21-year-old Congolese refugee, a recent high school graduate from Rwanda Coding Academy, is currently working on his project called “Zero Co2,” an Artificial Intelligence-powered carbon capture model intended to reduce emissions in the atmosphere. He firmly believes that his project could be one of the solutions to climate change effects.
Rwanda Education Board (REB) started a new programme of remedial courses for lower primary pupils that is expected to help improve the skills and capability of slow learners.
The educational remedial programme is all about extra class time offered to low-achieving learners to help improve their performance. It is offered in three subjects: Kinyarwanda, Maths, and English. The one-month programme started on July 29 and benefits pupils in primary one, two and three who were not promoted. Claudine Mukeshimana, a teacher in Kayonza District who attended a four-day remedial training course, said that this was initiated after seeing that a big number of learners repeat class and others are promoted but are not competent. She said that after a healthy breakfast for the learners which starts at 8:30am, classes begin at 9:00am and end at 12:00, every day.
Malawi
The Private Schools Association of Malawi (PRISAM) has made a significant contribution to advancing early childhood education by sponsoring the training of all teachers from private nursery schools.
On Friday, the association signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Emmanuel University in Lilongwe to provide training and capacity-building programs for nursery school teachers from PRISAM-member schools. According to PRISMA President Ernest Kaonga, the partnership aims to enhance the quality of early childhood education by equipping teachers with the necessary skills and knowledge to provide high-quality education at the foundational level.
Zomba District Council Chairperson, Basta Chirwa, has commended Advancing Girls Education in Africa (Age Africa) for promoting girls’ education in the district.
Age Africa provides bursaries to needy secondary school students at St. Mary’s Secondary School, Masongola and Mulunguzi secondary schools in Zomba District. 022/2023 Malawi Schools Certificate of Education (MSCE) Examination results show that some of the girls under Age Africa sponsorship were selected to pursue education in the public universities at the University of Malawi (UNIMA), Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (KUHES), Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS) and Mzuzu University. End!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Comments
Post a Comment