Being one of the youngest universities in the country, the University of Venda can easily adapt to any given academic situation in the global world and there is evidence to show that the university has fared much better in the last 25 years in comparison to its peers, despite its youthfulness.

These encouraging words were said by the Premier of Limpopo, Mr Sello Moloto, during the May graduation ceremonies when more than 1 300 students received their certificates, diplomas and degrees from the University of Venda. The gradation ceremonies took place at the Univen Auditorium on Friday and Saturday.

Moloto said Univen had embraced the academic transformation and curriculum changes in most of its disciplines. "The teaching of community development work as one of the academic disciplines, in particular, stands out as one of the most striking indicators of the university’s ability and determination to move with the times and changes currently taking place in our country. We are proud that the University of Venda is delivering on its mandate, as it is promised in its mandate, mission and vision statement."

Moloto said the country is faced with the biggest challenge of skills shortage ever experienced in its development evolution. "Universities which have embraced transformation like Univen, should take the lead to ensure that this challenge is overcome. In fact, we expect that it should be the task of all South African universities to research and teach technically and socially relevant subjects that are consistent with the common challenge, whilst keeping abreast with the evolving knowledge- and skills-based globalising economy. The other disjuncture which has always been a challenge in our country is the distinct gap between the academic world and the practical world of work. Our expectation would always be that universities are meant to prepare students and young graduates for the work environment, and the preparation should involve equipping them with the necessary skills and knowledge to be able to fit in the labour market. It is equally expected that the young graduates will be equipped with the ability to search for information which they could not have acquired at school or that is not readily available at any given time."

Moloto thanked the parents for sacrificing a lot in the education of their children. "I would like to take this opportunity to thank all parents for their support and sacrifices you made in educating your children. We wish and pray that your investments would yield good results. We urge you to encourage other parents to do the same by investing in education of their children because we believe that education is the weapon to overcome all the developmental challenges which we are confronted with, as a nation."