By Omar Bah
Legacy University, a bilingual private partnership institution founded to support the public private initiative of the Gambia Government, will in July commence its lectures, the University’s Vice Chancellor has confirmed to journalists on Monday.
The new University is projected to pursue a scholarly educational and moral training; strategic research for the attainment of a sustainable socio-economic development for the Gambia and West Africa.
Speaking at the University grounds, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Oyetola Oniwide said the University is set to commence academic activities in July 2018 with undergraduate programmes in the College of arts, law, administration and management, sciences, agriculture, engineering and environmental design, biological and applied sciences, education and social sciences.
He said the University which is fully residential is committed to producing future generation of leaders who are creative and resourceful.
“Our overall vision and mission is to advance knowledge, research and excellence towards achieving a fulfilled career and destiny. As an institution, we will be more responsive and relevant to the needs of the employers of our graduates and the expectations of our stakeholders,” he said.
As a university, he added, their main aspiration is to be the nation’s leader in knowledge creation as well as development of skills that will advance the national development agenda.
This university, he stated, is set to be a major net human resources contributor, in The Gambia and beyond.
He said the University’s LUGA 2017- 2041 Strategic Plan would focus on the following key areas of national interest: Enhancing academic quality; preparing students for a rapidly changing world; advancing innovation, research, and scholarship; instilling global competence and leadership; fostering community, equity, and diversity amongst others.
“There are many new challenges so we need new knowledge and new skills to tackle new challenges. We need the new knowledge generated through higher education in order to remain competitive in the global knowledge economy and to attract foreign direct investment,” he stated.
Legacy University, he said, will continue to support the national development agenda in The Gambia and beyond through quality education. “To achieve this, we shall harness the power of information technology to expand access to quality and revenue.”
“There is no doubt that Legacy University, in the near future, will be a major net contributor to the nation’s skills requirements in all academic fields and to realise the vision of this new University,” he concluded.
