Officials from Gicumbi-based University of Technology and Arts of Byumba (UTAB) have pledged to offer quality education that will not only be driven by the labour market, but also the country’s development aspirations.

The officials said this at the weekend during a ceremony to cerebrate the upgrade of the institution to university status by the Higher Education Council (HEC).

UTAB was previously known as Institut Polytechinique de Byumba, but a decision by the Ministry of Education, through HEC, saw it upgraded to become a fully-fledged university.

The institution was founded in 2006 by authorities of the former Byumba Prefecture and their partners, after realising that students from the region had to travel long distances, to areas like Kigali and other parts of the country to access higher education.

According to Prof. Faustin Nyumbayire, the vice chancellor of the university, the institution struggled with a single faculty in the beginning but committment saw two more faculties introduced, gaining recognition in the process.

"The shift from an institute to university requires more efforts; after realising that we had put in a lot of efforts to improve, we applied for accreditation to be upgraded to university status and this is a great milestone for us,” said Nyombayire.

"We continued working hard and worked with the government to ensure quality education. With this upgrade, we will be able to offer various courses. We have embarked on giving back to the community by supporting them in various ways,” he said.

Students at the institution, as well as district officials, welcomed the upgrade, saying it will open doors to modern courses as well as improve the economic potential of the district.

"I am happy to be a university student. It means that my degree will be from a university. We have a big task to make it more productive,” said Rachel Ndamukunda, a student.

Gicumbi mayor Alexandre Mvuyekure said the growth of the institution is a step forward, adding that it should go hand in hand with socio-economic development of the varsity’s environs.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw