Tourism and Hospitality graduates key to ATM strategy-Government
Government has described the tourism and hospitality graduating students as the key players towards the achievement of the recently launched Agriculture, Tourism and Mining(ATM) strategy.
Deputy minister of Education, Nancy Chaola Mdooko said this on Friday in Blantyre when 500 students were awarded with certificates, diploma and advanced diploma’s in areas areas of specialization under the the Malawi Institute of Tourism(MIT).
Mdooko said the country’s tourism and hospitality industry is now the competitive hence the need for the high quality players to transform the sector and contribute towards the complementing of the ATM strategy.
” Tourism sector is one of the key priority areas of economic development which this government has identified. Therefore, there is a need for the players to provide quality services to meet the customer demands. This will be achieved if the employees are well equipped with relevant knowledge and skills to change the status quo of the sector,” she said
The deputy minister said despite the booming of the tourism and hospitality industry in the country, the service delivery still remains a challenge due to poor remuneration entitled for the employees, hence the need to consider reviewing it to provide quality services.
Mdooko advised the graduates not only to be complacent but to be flag-beares wherever they go and endeavour to make a difference.
Speaking in a separate interview, the executive director for the institution Isabel Chakhumbira said was very hopeful the graduates will transform the tourism and hospitality sector with quality service delivery, looking at the knowledge and skills they have acquired.
Chakhumbira said the institute has made it easier for the students to pursue studies and careers and that the course content have been designed to suit the local and international environment, making easier for graduates to easily assimilate into tourism industry in Malawi.
According to Chakhumbira, since the institution was established in 1997, it has made progress in improving the course curriculum in collaboration with other international development partners such as GIZ/Miera projects and Tevet among others.
” These have helped to improve and provide quality performance. Employability and entrepreneurship are central for our curriculum now than ever before,” she said
The executive director said the initiatives have in a way helped to narrow down the unemployment gap as the graduates have opened their tourism and hospitality businesses that employ others.
” This is a skills oriented vocational institution. Therefore, we advice them not to wait for employment, but rather venture into entrepreneurship to narrow down the unemployment gap,” she said
In his contribution, the board chairperson for the institution, Vincent Chilinda appealed to government to consider funding some development activities for the institution in its bid to expand and provide quality trainings.
Chilinda said many development plans for the institution were failing to take shape due to poor financial support.
” So far we have been using our own money for development activities since we are not a government subvented institution. And due to financial difficulties the country is going through, many students fail to pay institution fees properly, a situation that also affect our execution of our project activities,” he said
During the 16th graduation ceremony, graduates were also awarded with various recognitions such as best performing students, hardworking and disciplined and the overall performing students, which saw Vanessa Kalukusha pocketing K500, 000 cash money as the overall performing student.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :