Midlands State University students now have an even wider choice of co-curricular activities following the launch of Elevate Trust at the Gweru \main Campus on Friday, 21 September 2018.
The club will operate under the supervision and guidance of the Faculty of Science and Technology and members will among other benefits enjoy capacity building programmes in a conducive environment for innovative thinking, enterprising as well as networking in STEM fields. Midlands State University currently has an enrolment of 2500 STEM students.
The Elevate Trust is a youth leadership and capacity building foundation that facilitates youth development in innovation, entrepreneurship and career development. It is based on three pillars Inspire, Innovate and Enterprise and its programmes are focusing on STEM education and careers, research, innovations and entrepreneurship.
Explaining the nature of the club to the students, Co-Founder and Director of Elevate Trust Ms Sicelo Dube challenged students to come up with ideas that will eventually lead to the establishment of startup companies that will change the lives of local communities.
‘So we`re talking of real problems in the community. We`re not going to just come up with ideas that are not relevant. We’re going to go into the community, look out for the problems, come back and solve the problems in ways that are innovative enough for us to start companies for us to make a difference,’ she said.
Acting Dean in the Faculty of Science and Technology Dr Charles Paradzayi expressed optimism that Elevate Trust will act as a foundation from which students will develop their ideas into reality and contribute towards the socio-economic development of the country.
‘Innovation is the key driver for economic prosperity. It is my sincere hope that Elevate Trust will enhance youth and women development in the field of innovation. This will transform them into successful entrepreneurs who will impact positively on the economy of the country and more importantly, help the nation achieve a middle-income status by 2030,’ said Dr Paradzayi.
Running under the theme, ‘Re-imagining Zimbabwe through STEM lenses,’ the launch was attended by students, mainly from the science faculties, lecturers, students from the National University of Science and Technology and was sponsored by Doves.
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