IRDP Implements Robust Program To Mold Students With Entrepreneurship Skills -

By Valentine Oforo, Dodoma

THE Institute of Rural Development Planning (IRDP)
is implementing a robust programme targeting to impart to its students a spirit
of creativity and accountability pertaining to different entrepreneurship facets.

The programme, being executed through the special center dubbed ‘Mipango Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center’s (MEI), provides
the students with the diverse practical-based entrepreneurship skills,
irrespective to their affiliated Degree, Diploma and Certificates courses, with
an eye to enable them stand a better side to employ themselves after
graduating.

Giving an exclusive interview to this publication in
Dodoma Capital City, the Institute’s Deputy Rector, Academics, Research and
Consultancy, Prof. Provident Dimoso expressed that since its inception the
initiative has so far played key role to assist the graduated students to
escape from the shackles of unemployment.

“The center (MEI), is the vital tailor-made
department for imparting the students with key practical skills on
entrepreneurship matters and since its inception it has played a serious role
to steer entrepreneurship spirit to beneficiary students, as well as towards
various local communities,” he briefed.

The Don observed that the Dodoma-based had decided to initiate the
center after coming aware that most students who are graduating from different
universities across the country are failing to employ themselves as they lack
needed entrepreneurship skills to assist the employing themselves through
diverse self-income generating activities.

“The rate of unemployment rate among the elite youth
across the country keeps mounting due to failure by most of the local colleges
to shape their students with useful entrepreneurship skills,” he observed.

He further added that the center serves as an
important podium to allow the students to hatch and showcase different useful
entrepreneurship that they have been endowed with under the tutelage of the
experience and high-profile trainers.

“Establishment of the center has to a greater extent
help to attract many students to opting joining with our college because of
assurance of acquiring useful skills for assisting them to venture of different entrepreneurship undertakings after graduating,” he said.

He said the college was very determined to develop
meaningful courses that give answers to the currently needed community
development, in all vital areas, such as business, planning, as well as
investment.

“We’re normally creating the new teaching programs
through use of tracer study, one based on tracing performance of IRPD’s
graduates to determine their successes and failure, if any, in order to realize
and bridge any gaps in its training curriculum,” he expressed.

He informed that the college had recently introduced
at least six new training curricula to help continue creating key human power
with deserved quality and skills to cater for the local labor market demand as
well as the country’s set economic vision,” he said.

“We have developed the new curricula through use of
an intensive labor market survey, the survey which was carried out in all the
geographical zones of the country in order to obtain exhaustive information
from a diverse range of stakeholders,” he expressed.

According to him, the involved stakeholders include
think tanks from the National Council for Technical and Vocational Education
(NACTVET), the Tanzania Commission for University (TCU), the Prime Minister’s
Office (Regional Administration and Local Government), the President Office (Public
Service Management and Good Governance) as well as others from key academic
Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) to mention but a few.

Prof. Dimoso unveiled the envisaged six programs as
Basic Technician, Technician Certificate and Ordinary Diploma in Accountancy
and Finance, (NTA-46), Information Technology (IT), Geomatics, Basic
Technician, Technician Certificate and Ordinary Diploma and Bachelor Degree in
Urban and Rural Planning (NTA 4-8), Master Degree in Environmental and
Occupational Health (NTA 9) and Master Degree in Human Resource Management (NTA
9).

The Institute of Rural Development Planning (IRDP)
is a corporate body established by the Parliamentary Act No. 8 of the 1980s.
Since its establishment, IRDP has been shaping destinies in planning and
research methodologies focusing on the future prosperity of its students.