[ Home ] [ Speeches & statements ]

The Ministerial Working Group to Facilitate the Establishment of a Single Distance Learning Institution will hold its second meeting on August 19 and 20, 2001.

Chaired by Dr Franklin Sonn, former South African Ambassador to the United States of America, the Group includes the Vice-Chancellors of the three institutions to be merged - namely University of South Africa (Unisa), Technikon SA and the Distance Education Campus of Vista University - and other experts in higher education.

At its first meeting, on July 19, the Group said it would be guided by national imperatives, including the challenge of creating an institution, which would contribute to high-level human resource development. The Vice-Chancellors of the merger partners expressed their support for the merger and committed their institutions to positive and constructive participation in the process towards the merger.

It was acknowledged by all present that a common approach to some matters affecting the institutions concerned was already necessary. Towards this end, no new infrastructural developments would be undertaken by any of the institutions and no new permanent senior staff appointments (up to the level of dean) would be made. The institutions to co-ordinate the filling of posts during the transition to a single institution will establish a trilateral committee.

The forthcoming meeting is expected to begin work on a vision for the new institution. Pursuant to this, the institutions are expected to table their current profiles, with the Department of Education giving an overview of distance education provisioning by contact universities and technikons, and independent experts making an input on international benchmarks as well as possible structural models.

Contact: Mr Themba Mhambi at (012) 312 5324

Issued by Department of Education

14 August 2001