Address by President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
on Knowledge Day ( Carthage , July 11, 2008)
In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionat
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to meet with you again on this special occasion to celebrate, as is our custom every year, Knowledge Day, and to pay tribute to the family of education, training, higher education, scientific research and technology, as well as to all who have embraced success and distinction in all fields of academic specialization.
While congratulating all those who, in a moment, will receive medals and awards, I would like to underline that the celebration of Knowledge Day constitutes a renewed national occasion through which we reaffirm the importance we attach to our human resources, and the need to offer them all due care, and to invest in, and rely on, their potentialities, as they constitute our major national asset and our durable capital in the process of ensuring our country's progress and prosperity.
I wish to pay tribute, on this occasion, to Mr. Diamil Faye, President of the Africa International Sports Convention (CISA), for awarding me the Shield of "the best development policy for sports installations in Africa ". To him and to Mrs. Hassiba Boulmerka, president of the jury awarding this prize, I would like to express my sincere thanks and gratitude for their highly commendable initiative. I also appreciate Mr. Diamil Faye's noble feelings toward Tunisia and its leadership, and his words in praise of Tunisia 's progress and achievements.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We are all entitled to take pride in the honorable school and university results achieved in Tunisia . The rate of success in all cycles of education has increased; and the same holds true for the number of those having obtained graduation diplomas and those having succeeded with honors. This confirms the soundness of our educational and pedagogical system, its judicious conformity with international standards, and its eligibility for the praise it has received in the latest Davos Forum report which ranked Tunisia 1st among Arab and African countries and 12th internationally in terms of quality of education system.
Moreover, Tunisia has managed to achieve, before the due dates, most of the objectives set by such UN programs as "Education for All", as well as "the Millennium Development Goals", and the "United Nations Literacy Decade".
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Mastering a second language or more is, for learners, a valuable gain and an added value in their training and culture, offering them large prospects for employment and vast opportunities for communication with the other. Therefore, to increase the employability of the graduates of our education and training system, we call for granting further attention to the teaching of languages, and for adopting the necessary measures to develop language teaching and to bring the students' acquisitions in this field up to the current international standards.
In order to increase the employability of young people, we also call for undertaking a thorough revision of the school counseling system in light of the emergence of new professions, skills and specialties; the aim being to better adapt the quality of training to the requirements of development and employment, and to avoid thrusting our children into fields of study with limited prospects.
We have endeavored, in the past few years, to diversify fields of study and to create new tracks in most areas of specialization. Now it is time to enhance the efficiency of the school counseling process, and to sensitize pupils and their parents to the importance of opting for the occupations of the future and meeting the requirements of the job market, according to the competence and personal predisposition of each pupil.
We have been keen on establishing permanent bridges between the various cycles of education, training, higher education and scientific research, in order to offer learners, particularly those involved in vocational training, further opportunities for specialization.
Considering the importance of ensuring quality as a central element in this reform, we give instructions for establishing a national body for the assessment of vocational training, which shall include experts and professionals capable of assessing the performance of public and private training institutions, and suggesting mechanisms and measures to improve the quality of training and ensure conformity between the needs of economic enterprises and the job market.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Early next November, our University will reach its 50th year of existence. This will offer a propitious opportunity to review the major developments and achievements our University has accomplished all along this period, especially that we have offered it adequate conditions to set its objectives, reform its structures, manage its affairs, and acquire its due scientific system of reference at the national, regional and international levels.
Given the expected increase, during the coming five-year period, in the number of applicants seeking admission into private institutions, which will further enrich and diversify the national academic scene, we exhort promoters and investors to provide the necessary funds for the creation of institutions having sufficient resources allowing them to meet the requirements of the expected competition, as a result of the opening of the service sector to foreign investment.
In line with the instructions we gave three years ago concerning the conversion of the national system of university diplomas into the LMD system which involves a gradual promotion from the Licence to the Master's, and then to the Doctorate degrees, we give instructions to start, from the beginning of 2009, developing concepts for the implementation of the second phase of this reform, by introducing the Master's degree after the graduation of the first class of Licence holders.
Between 2006 and 2008, over 990 new Licences have been approved in 696 tracks in public higher education institutions, and 294 tracks in private institutions.
While taking note, with satisfaction, of the fact that applied Licences now represent 70% of professionalizing Licences, we appreciate the work done regarding co-construction for a considerable number of applied Licences, as part of partnership between academics and professionals.
Based on this fundamental choice, we give instructions for promoting training in professional Master's degrees in promising fields allowing to acquire new technologies that can help develop the professional competence of higher education graduates, through coordination between the Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Technology, and the 21-21 Fund.
To promote our growing scientific and technological competences, we give instructions so that the necessary measures be taken to increase the training capacity of preparatory schools for engineering studies, and to allow holders of the scientific and technological Maîtrise degrees to gain admission into the school of engineers according to specific conditions and criteria.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We have considered scientific research and technological innovation as a major element of support for development, thanks to the competent human resources and the financial incentives we have provided for this sector, which have helped it achieve numerous positive results.
To further enhance this sector's efficiency and evolution, we call for reviewing the organization and management of research laboratories in accordance with criteria and indicators that ensure their conformity with the national research priorities, and their openness on their international environment.
Concerning the establishment of technological poles, we give instructions for the restructuring of such poles by promoting partnership between the public and private sectors in terms of scientific research and production sources, and by creating management companies, with the participation of banks and the concerned institutions.
We will also endeavor to further promote the openness of research institutions on their economic environment, by taking the necessary legislative measures to convert universities, higher education and research institutions, and public scientific research institutions, into public institutions having a scientific and technological character, in accordance with conditions and criteria to be set for that purpose.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We are sparing no effort to provide care to the family of education, training, higher education, scientific research and technology, as well as to our young generations in primary and secondary schools, in universities, and in training and research centers.
I am convinced that educators, trainers, teachers, researchers, pupils and students are all aware of the efforts and sacrifices made by the national community in order to promote the performance of our primary and secondary schools and our faculties to the highest levels. For we have no other path to make up for our country's limited natural resources than to invest in knowledge, work and intelligence.
Thank you for your attention.
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