Midlands State University through its Library Services Department recently donated large consignments of books to various high schools and tertiary institutions in the Midlands Province. The donation of books was aimed at strengthening the library capacity of the beneficiaries.
Speaking at the official handover ceremony, the Midlands State University, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Business Development and Administration, Professor K. H. Wekwete, said the donation was in keeping with the three principal functions of a university.
‘A university does three primary things, we teach so that people ultimately get their degrees, we create new knowledge through research and the third area, which is why we are here is engagement, we engage with our communities’, said Professor Wekwete.
He went on to highlight that the concept of community engagement is meant to ensure that MSU is part and parcel of the communities it serves and not merely an ivory tower just awarding degrees.
Also speaking during the event, Gweru Polytechnic Librarian, Mrs Kamba thanked Midlands State University on behalf of all the beneficiaries for the generous donation and kind gesture.
‘We are humbled, we never thought you (MSU) were thinking of us, the donation will help in imparting knowledge to our students’, she said.
Beneficiaries of the books included, Fletcher High School, Senga Secondary School, Mposi Secondary School, Mambo High School, Mkomba 3 High School, Ascot Secondary School, Ernest Kadungure, Airforce Thornhill Secondary School, Manunure Secondary School, Kaguvi Training Centre, Mkomba Teachers College, Kwekwe Polytechnic and Gweru Polytechnic.
The ceremony was attended by various headmasters, teachers and officials from various schools and institutions of higher learning. Also in attendance were members of the MSU community among them the Registrar, Mr E. Mupfiga, Deputy Librarian, Mr F. Masunungure, the Dean of Arts, Dr T. Mashingaidze, the Dean of Natural Resources Management and Agriculture, Mr T. Madanzi and Sodew CEO, Mr T Chigwaza.