President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has thanked United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for undertaking various projects aimed at improving the quality of education in Malawi.

Speaking during the official opening of the UNIPOD at the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS) in Blantyre on Wednesday, Chakwera described UNDP as an embodiment of a collaborative rather than imperialist approach to development.

“Your Excellency, Madam Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa, I am conveying to you and your team my gratitude on behalf of all Malawians for the financial and technical support you have rendered to make this development possible. In fact, the naming of the collaborative space inside this building in your honour is most fitting,” said the Malawi leader.

Chakwera said UNIPOD sets a model for the future of vocational education in Malawi.

He commended the MUBAS Management for demonstrating dedication and hard work during the implementation of the project.

Turning to his Cabinet ministers, President Chakwera directed Ministers of Education and Finance to ensure that these principles are found in the National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (NSTIP).

“This is important because we are in the age of digitization, so we should use our power and wisdom to digitize our economy so that our commerce becomes E-commerce, our learning becomes E-learning, our health becomes E-health, our governance becomes E-governance. So in order to promote this, from next month, my government through the National Commission for Science and Technology will organize a Hackathon worth 50 million at UNIPOD here, and this year’s Hackathon will be to design products that generate electricity without reducing energy, in English they say Renewable Energy Technology. So you businessmen and foreign organizations who help us with development projects, also invest in this to make this Hackathon hot,” said the President.