’Mantoetse Maama
The National University of Lesotho (NUL) and Germany’s Erfurt University of Applied Sciences on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for academic cooperation.
The agreement would see NUL’s Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work collaborate with Erfurt “in pursuit of excellence in scholarships and dissemination of knowledge to generate reciprocal benefit within a framework of openness, fairness and equity.”
NUL Pro Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mafa Sejanamane said the MoU would “open doors” for the mutual benefit of the two varsities.
“Joint activities between the two institutions will include joint research projects, training, organisation of joint workshops, conferences and visits, exchange of students, joint proposals for funding, joint publications as well as, exchange of faculty members and research employees,” Prof Sejanamane said.
The NUL Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Dr Motšelisi Mokhethi also said the agreement would enhance students’ networking amid dwindling resources for academic programmes.
“The Faculty of Social Sciences is committed to ensuring academic excellence in its programmes. As a result, collaborating with other institutions enhances the sharing of ideas and jointly tackling academic issues, research and exchange of staff and students,” she said.
Jotham Dhemba of the NUL Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, said the collaboration provided a framework for pursuing common areas of interest regarding curriculum development and research thereby guaranteeing the provision of high quality programmes.
“Through the exchange of staff and students, we shall gain exposure and understand what happens in the other parts of the world. Students will better understand other cultures, and get wider employment opportunities,” added Mr Dhemba.
He further said the two universities were already writing a book together with his Department already contributing a chapter on Lesotho’s healthcare systems.
Prof Friso Ross, who signed the MoU on behalf of Erfurt University, said such academic collaboration was mutually beneficial.
“This MoU will facilitate mutual sharing of ideas and knowledge, as well as learning common and different ways of doing things,” Prof Ross said.