HoR Members Visited SMU 

hr1.jpg

 

The FDRE Council of House of Representatives, Human Resources Development, Placement, and Technology Affairs Standing Committee members, paid a visit to St. Mary’s University on the May 23, 2022, as part their plan to have a clear picture of the operations of private HEIs. 

hr2.jpg

Welcomed by the University’s leadership team led by the President, Dr. Wondwosen Tamrat (Asso. Prof.), the four-member team talked to the leadership of the University and found out that the University: 

  • Withstood the COVID-19 pandemic period retaining all its staff members without laying off a single employee; 
  • Involved students in the various University Committees; 
  • Started Carrying out its staff development plan earlier on; 
  • Published children’s supplementary readers in diverse Ethiopian languages; and 
  • Engaged in organizing national and international conferences and community-based activities. 
hr3.jpg


The University’s leadership team, on their part, thanked the visiting team, as the visit was the first of its kind, and raised issues of concern, among which included were: 

  • Lack of loan facility, with reasonable interest rate, to execute projects; 
  • Absence of duty-free privileges for computers and its accessories as in experiences in the East Africa zone; 
  • Not rendering preferential treatment, by the Government, to the private education sector in getting plot of land, as stated in the various House bills; 
  • Lacking in incentives for institutions that fare better in the sector; 
  • Challenges of meeting needs of infrastructure and facilities. 

Finally, upon completion of their visit, the team, expressing their appreciation about what they witnessed, suggested that the University raise policy issues in the presence of invited House members at conferences to be organized in the future.