Tagwira appointed Africa University Vice-Chancellor
Fanuel Tagwira (51), the former dean of the Agriculture Faculty, is Africa University’s new Vice-Chancellor. Prof Tagwira was appointed to the post by the Africa University Board of Directors following 15 months as Interim Vice-Chancellor of the institution.
“He is the appropriate person – he knows and understands the environment and the institution – and he is a seasoned leader who can take the university to the next level,” said Bishop Marcus Matthews, the vice-chair of the board of trustees.
Impressed with his performance during difficult times – characterised by an unprecedented meltdown of the Zimbabwean economy, which threatened the survival of many institutions, the university’s board members expressed great confidence in Prof Tagwira’s abilities.
While other universities in the country- confronted with deteriorating infrastructure and inadequate human and capital resources – shut their doors, Africa University remained open and continued with effective teaching, learning and community service.
“He is the right person to continue what he has started,” said Bishop David Yemba, Chancellor and chairperson of the board.
“I applaud the board’s decision to appoint Prof Tagwira and I look forward to strong collaborative work with him in the partnership between the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry and Africa University,” said Dr Jerome King Del Pino, general secretary of the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry, the lead church agency charged with the nurturing of the university.
Under Prof Tagwira, Africa University has made tough decisions that are transforming its enrolment and improving its prospects for sustainability.
In March 2008, the institution launched its first distance learning centre and satellite campus in Maputo. It has also focused on improving students’ quality of life and implemented creative measures to bolster staff retention and welfare.
Faced with an estimated inflation rate in excess of 230 million percent and the daily depreciation of the purchasing power of the Zimbabwe dollar, the university could no longer collect meaningful fees in local currency. It moved to collection of fees in United States dollars from all its students, both national and international, and intensified its efforts to provide scholarship funds for needy students.
The university’s board affirmed these decisions as crucial to enabling the institution to grow and fully realise its mission and Prof Tagwira’s contributions to the effort have earned him respect among students and faculty alike.
“In Prof Tagwira, we have someone who has been tried and tested and found to be a good performer,” said Dr Peter Fasan, a fellow academic and dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences.
“He knows academic challenges and how to resolve them. Moreover, having been part of the university since its inception, he has a stake in ensuring the continuing success of the institution.
“In spite of all the challenges we have faced, particularly with the economy, we note improvements,” said Bruce Chakatsva, president of the Students’ Representative Council.
“Yes, with the fees in US dollars for everyone, it is expensive. But we have managed to pull through…as students, we appreciate his efforts,” he added.
Prof Tagwira said he was strongly committed to Africa University’s pan-African ethos and to keeping the institution in the forefront of higher education provision on the continent.
In accepting the appointment, Prof Tagwira said: “I am quite aware of the enormity of the task ahead of me and of the work that needs to be done. I draw strength from this board, which is extremely supportive, offering useful ideas and advice to me whenever I need them. I take comfort in the administrators, faculty and students who also support me very much.
“I do not take this responsibility lightly. I take it as a calling from the Lord. I want to continue to serve in a faithful way, so that one day, it can be said of me as it was of King David at the end of his life, that ‘with integrity of heart and skillful hands, he led them’.”
Prof Tagwira will continue working closely with the university’s Associate Vice-Chancellor for Institutional Advancement, Mr James H. Salley, in discharging his responsibilities. An expanded portfolio, which includes church and external/international relations, assigned to Mr Salley during the transition period, has been made a permanent part of his job.
A pioneer staff member, Prof Tagwira joined Africa University in August 1992 as the first full-time faculty member in the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
He has contributed to the university’s growth and reputation through his teaching and his various research efforts, which are primarily aimed at improving soil productivity and livelihoods in the smallholder-farming sector. He is widely published and serves on a number of national and international committees, boards and organisations.
Born in 1957 in the Chiredzi District of Masvingo, Prof Tagwira holds a BSc. degree in Chemistry and Biology from the National University of Lesotho, an MSc. in Soil Chemistry from Reading University in England and a PhD in Soil Chemistry and Fertility awarded by the University of Zimbabwe, but carried out in collaboration with Michigan State University in the USA.
Prof Tagwira is not only an excellent lecturer, leading researcher and keen environmentalist, but is also a church elder.
Posted by Simba Dzvairo
on April 19, 2009. Filed under Resource Center.
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