At 53rd meeting of committee of experts: African interstate veterinary science school authorities urged to be dev’t ambassadors.

The call was made by Prof Gabsa Wilfred, representative of the Minister of Higher Education, yesterday during the opening ceremony of the 2024 meeting taking place in Yaounde.

The five-day gathering, which ends on October 25, is holding under the theme “Digital transformation of veterinary training at Interstate School of Veterinary Science and Medicine: challenges and opportunities for access to clinical learning”.

During the gathering, the representatives of the 14 West and Central African member states running the Senegal-based institution will, among others, evaluate the level of the implementations that were made during the 52nd meeting of the school’s committee of experts and chart a way forward.

The talks will notably touch on the school’s financial governance and the overall day-to-day running of the structure, with special focus notably on the digitalisation of the Dakar-based institution.

The event will prepare the grounds for the holding of the school’s Board of Governors, expected in the nearest future.

The opening ceremony was attended by the Director General of the institution, Yamba Kaboret, the Charge de Mission of the gathering, Dr Josias Tebero, among other personalities in the veterinary sector. 

Authorities urged to prioritise institution’s growth 

Speaking during the opening ceremony, Prof Gabsa Wilfred said the timing of the Yaounde meeting and its theme are timely.

He said the theme, which is anchored on digitalisation, opens doors for the school to embrace digitalisation as a tool that can help in widening the knowhow of the institution’s learners and strengthen the cooperation that exists between the national sections of the Dakar-headquartered international facility.

The representative of the Minister of Higher Education particularly enjoined the experts to, in the course of their deliberations, display imaginative, creative and intellectual fertility that will enable them to come up with ideas that will help the school in tackling its increasingly crucial needs of improving training, research and other key areas.

“The EISMV in Dakar today plays a crucial role in training and research in animal health, a field that has become essential in the face of growing challenges linked to food safety, public health and environmental protection. You will be responsible for tackling these challenges with rigour, method and innovation,” Prof Gabsa stated.

The Cameroonian official told the experts to, in that regard, carry out reflections while taking into account the Cameroonian model that, among others, prioritises professionalisation, quality assurance and the employability of graduates as prescribed by the Head of State, Paul Biya, and recently implemented by the government.

Gov’t restates commitment to continue supporting initiative

Prof Gabsa, in his speech, also restated gov’t’s commitment to continue supporting not only the existence but the continuous and steady growth of the regional institution.

According to the official, Cameroon as a country, has massively benefitted from the school’s existence and will, as it has always done with other regional initiatives, stop at nothing in supporting its existence. 

He, among others, cited the training of Cameroonian veterinarians which, he said, are on a daily basis, making remarkable contribution in improving the governance of animal health in the country, insisting the government will as concerns to the school’s strategic position, 

Shaping school’s future

Addressing the press after the opening ceremony, the Director General of the institution, Yamba Kaboret, and the Charge de Mission, Dr Josias Tebero, both pledged to use the Yaounde meeting in shaping a better future for the structure.

Dr Tebero said the participants will use the gathering in fully evaluating what was done in the year 2023 under review and diligently look into the projects that will be executed in 2024.

He said the participants will target areas like improvements in the domains of training, research and innovations like the digitalisation of the institution to ensure that it produces high-level professionals who will contribute to the wellbeing of the society.

“We will also try to do a financial review because we need money to be able to execute all our projects. The target is checking if the countries are sufficiently contributing to enable us to attain our objectives. We will check if countries need to multiply their efforts in supporting the institution,” Dr Tebero said.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3267 of Tuesday October 22, 2024