admin. . 1 000 students from 20 countries to attend
Tafadzwa Kadani
Zimbabwe is set to host one of Africa’s biggest University Indaba, the Pan African Universities Debate Championships (PAUDC) in the next few months. PAUDC is one of Africa’s major debating tournaments, and one of the largest annual student events in the continent. Midlands State University (MSU) will be hosting the Pan African Universities Debate Championships from December 7 to the 17th.
The convener of the tournament and immediate past chairperson of the PAUDC Mr Samuel Muleya said the bid host the event was secured at two major events.
“Midlands state university won the bid to host this prestigious tournament at the University of Limpopo South Africa and further went on to ratify the bid according to the pan African universities debate championship constitution in Ghana in December 2015,” said Mr Muleya.
The tournament was founded in 2008 and has been hosted by six other African countries with Botswana and South Africa having hosted the tournament of such magnitude twice respectively.
Participating countries include Ghana, Lesotho, Togo, Kenya, Cameroon, Gambia, South Africa and Botswana among others.
This debate tournament is a platform for international intellectual engagement on topical contemporary issues affecting the African states.
Debate is one of the most popular non-sporting activities and in some nations it has been and continues to be used to impact national policies.
The hosting country gets to decide the theme for that particular year and this edition is titled ‘Madzimbabwe 2016’ named after the Great Zimbabwe monument.
The indaba is set to bring in more than 1000 students from 20 African countries with more than hundred top African universities participating in this year’s edition.
The total number of participating students is set to increase to an estimated 1200 with local tertiary institutions also set to take part in the tournament.
The numbers include debaters, public speakers as well as adjudicators who will be participating at the tournament.
The previous tournament was held at the University of Ghana and was named ‘Legon 2015’.
A provision is made to include observers and volunteers who would be selected on the basis of the likelihood for them to contribute to the development of debate in their respective countries especially Zimbabwe.
Having an event of this magnitude has a plethora of advantages on the hosting country and especially in Zimbabwe where the country is facing a number of challenges.
Tertiary institutions have a very important role in any nation as their researches and symposiums discuss and analyse current issues that affect Africa and the world at large.
The solutions for a better tomorrow are with the youth and it is high time Government started to take these debating tournaments seriously.
Mr Muleya also said this is a platform to showcase existing facilities towards broader marketing of higher and tertiary institutions in Zimbabwe as a whole.
Said Mr Muleya, “through Madzimbabwe 2016, real engagements are stirred, at times real emotions are tapped. Real solutions are discovered and remedies to African challenges are brought forth by young African minds creating a footprint in African Debating.”
“We invite policy formulators to this prestigious tournament as well as the media so that some of the key points during the debate rounds can be noted towards strategic policy formulation and implementation for Africa,” he added.
The Oxford Union is a good example of how powerful debate is and how it can produce well-groomed leaders.
The Union has for many years been a forum for high class debating, and many of the country’s most prestigious speakers gained their eloquence in the debating chamber which has hosted guests ranging from Ronald Reagan to the Dalai Lama.
The Union attracts figures from all walks of life and continues to maintain its unparalleled reputation for hosting high profile guests from around the globe.
It attracts the most well-renowned speakers from all walks of life and especially in the world of politics.
Guests have included the US Presidents Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan and the UK Prime Ministers Winston Churchill among a pool of others.
If we have such interaction in Zimbabwe between the politicians or policy makers and university students we open u to new ideas and research too.
Economist Dr Albert Mukochekanwa also weighed in on the issue saying Zimbabwe has more to gain from hosting this event.
“There are a number of advantages that we as the host can derive from this tournament, for example the hotels in Gweru will have extra customers and at a small scale, assuming they will come with their USD, more money will be added into the circulation in Gweru,” said Mr Mukochekanwa.
Though most of the participants of the PAUDC will be accommodated at MSU during the tournament, which has the largest campus residence in Zimbabwe hotels and lodges will still get a sizeable number of customers.
Dr Mukochekanwa also added that the event was good for the tourism sector as these students would want to explore the tourist sites and in turn they will spread the word about Zimbabwe.
Students, YOU CAN SEND YOUR ARTICLES THROUGH E-MAIL, FACEBOOK, WHATSAPP or TEXT Just app Charles Mushinga on 0772936678 or send your articles, pictures, poetry, art . . . to Charles Mushinga at [email protected] or [email protected] or follow Charles Mushinga on Facebook or @charlesmushinga on Twitter. You can also post articles to The Sunday Mail Bridge, PO Box 396, Harare or call 0772936678.
Online Reporter