Malawi President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has disclosed that his administration has gone into a $30 million partnership with the World Bank to establish African Centers of Excellence.

Chakwera made the remarks at the Mzuzu University (Mzuni) during a graduation of 2, 625 students on Thursday. He said one of the African Centres of Excellence will be established here at Mzuni.

The Malawi leader stated that the $30 million partnership is in addition to the $100 million dollar partnership his govenrment entered with the World Bank’s Skills for A Vibrant Economy Project (SAVE) through the Ministries of Education and Labour.

Chakwera also disclosed that $6.3 million of the SAVE Project have been allocated to Mzuni to build a facility for skills development.

He therefore challenged the graduates to actively participate in identifying solutions to the social and economic challenges facing the country.

“Apart from our need for graduates who have an expert understanding and a useful skill, we also need our graduates to be able to solve problems. And I must say that in this area of problem-solving, Mzuzu University deserves praise,” he said.

He added: “Not only is problem-solving capacity central to the University’s 10 Year Strategic Plan, but it actively informs the choice and design of the academic programs here. I know of universities that busy themselves with teaching students to solve problems that no longer exist or that are not the primary problems our country faces, but Mzuzu University has always distinguished itself by being a place that gives its students the tools to solve the problems that Malawi is facing today and the problems Malawi expects to face tomorrow.”

President Chakwera further stated that solving the problems of Malawi is the reason why Mzuni is partnering with Buccelletti Vivai and Agrimedia of Italy to establish a Holticultural and Fruit Micropropagation and Development Centre to support mega farms.

He said this is also the reason why Mzuni is working closely with the African Development Bank to support the Promoting Investment and Competitiveness in the Tourism Sector (PICTS) Project and to establish a vibrant Tourism Business Incubation Centre here.

“Solving the problems of Malawi is the reason Mzuni is actively involved in supporting the production of 20 megawatts of solar energy at Choma. Solving and fixing the problems of Malawi is what our graduates should be doing, because in this country, you are either fixing the problem or are part of the problem. The choice is yours,” challenged Chakwera.