Former UK Prime Minister visits Ruimsig
"Hosting a speaker of such prestige on our campus is a remarkable honour and reinforces our commitment to a truly global education for all our students. "
Tony Blair, the former Prime Minister of the UK, recently visited students at Monash South Africa’s (MSA) Ruimsig Campus to talk to them about internationalism.
Blair also joined a panel of local experts and leaders to discuss issues affecting African development.
He emphasised that governance is the key issue facing African countries. “If countries are well governed, they will succeed,” said Blair. “But if they are poorly governed, they will fail.”
He added that institutions must focus on creativity rather than rote learning. Blair further noted that if a country has even one effective university, it may stand as an example to others and encourage better education.
Other esteemed panelists who joined the discussion on the topic included Professor Olive Shisana, President and CEO of Monash, Evidence Based Solutions and member of the MSA Advisory Board; Professor Narend Baijnath, CEO of the Council on Higher Education; Ogi Williams, Senior Research Analyst, In On Africa; and Tafadzwa Mandinyenya of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Youth Network.
The topic of the discussion was highly relevant and ensured a robust discussion regarding the need for an Afro-centric education, while maintaining a globally relevant perspective and the ability of students to work cross-culturally and across the globe. MSA is well known for its diverse student body, with over 60 different nationalities represented on the campus, presenting a diverse array of international perspectives in lectures, tutorials and discussions.
Sharad Mehra, CEO of MSA, expressed his gratitude to the former prime minister for his attendance and continued interest in African development, saying: “Our campus prides itself on providing internationally relevant degrees, while ensuring an education sensitive to African needs and challenges.
“Hosting a speaker of such prestige on our campus is a remarkable honour and reinforces our commitment to a truly global education for all our students. We are so very grateful to Blair for participating in this incredible event and visiting our campus.”
The MSA campus ensures international opportunities by assisting students to participate in their Study Abroad programme, thus allowing students to broaden their horizons and gain a global perspective. Added to its commitment to internationalism, MSA also strives to provide a memorable student experience and to ultimately ensure the employability of its graduates in whichever field they choose to work.
Blair has paid many visits to Laureate network institutions, including universities such as INTI in Malaysia, and Laureate campuses in São Paulo, Brazil; in Lima, Peru; Germany, Spain, Turkey, Mexico and Brazil.
To get to know more about Tony Blair, watch this Youtube video of one of his speeches:
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