Online Reporter
Sikhumbuzo Moyo
THE Integrated Skills Expanded Outreach Programme (ISEOP) exemplifies the Government’s steadfast commitment to building a knowledge-driven, industrialised and inclusive economy, one that leaves no person or place behind.
Initiated by the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development, and implemented through Westgate Industrial Training College, the programme seeks to equip rural youth with both practical and theoretical skills in engineering and related trades, fostering self-sustainability and supporting infrastructure development across districts nationwide.
Last week, Deputy Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education Innovation, Science and Technology Development Simelisizwe Sibanda presided over a graduation ceremony for 56 graduates at Inyathi Training Centre in Bubi district in which the graduates received certificates in basic Motor vehicle maintenance, solar installation, professional cookery and welding.
“We are not merely handing over certificates for attending a course, we are celebrating transformation, resilience and the power of hands-on skills to shape the destiny of our communities. This milestone is not only a celebration of academic achievement but a reaffirmation of our collective commitment to building a skilled, innovative, and inclusive Zimbabwe,” said Dep Minister Sibanda.
Dep Minister Sibanda said each graduation ceremony strengthens the resolve to align education with national development.
He said the skills gained by the students go beyond certificates, they are tools of transformation, tools that empower young people to be creators of wealth not seekers of employment.
“Our Ministry, under the visionary leadership of President Mnangagwa, continues to champion the mantra of “Education 5.0”, a model that promotes teaching, research, community service, innovation, and industrialization,” said Dep Minister Sibanda.
Dep Minister Sibanda said the vision calls for graduates who can think, innovate, and produce, responding to local and national needs, remarking that as the Ministry envisions, the country’s polytechnics and industrial training colleges must be engines of innovation and industrialization, producing skilled, competent citizens capable of transforming raw ideas into tangible products and services.
“Our young graduates stand equipped not just with theory, but with hands that can create, hands that can repair, hands that can serve. This programme is more than training; it is a message of hope to every rural youth that you are not forgotten, you are the cornerstone of the nation’s future
