The King also stated that the progress registered towards the establishment of the School of Engineering is positive development that has great potential in developing human capital in critical areas that will ensure that Lesotho achieves her aspirations for accelerated economic development. He pointed out that the approval by Lesotho government to provide funding for the implementation of the project is also important. The King further said the launching of the NUL Innovation Hub in last November is another milestone achievement intended to incubate students into a culture of entrepreneurship so that they become the job creators and not the job seekers.

 “The strides made by NUL in harnessing expert knowledge for incubating business models from conception to industrial mas production is commendable,” he said. Since the University is reported to be facing shortage of funds due to dropping government subvention, the King urged the Council to search for alternative sources of funding to address the challenge and enable the University to implement the envisaged programmes for the development of Lesotho.

 He commended the Council for its commitment and contributions towards the University and said its future depends on governing structures such as the Council. He also appealed to the Council to reflect and review the plans it set for itself before their time of office expires in September this year. Speaking at the same meeting, the Deputy Minister of Education and Training Mothepu Mahapa commended NUL for the innovations implemented to ensure that it offers programmes that are beyond just education but those that will help students and society to address the economic needs that they currently.

 He said the ministry is expecting the university to grow beyond providing education by directing its human capital efforts in areas such as water, mining, tourism and textiles. Mahapa thanked Metropolitan Lesotho for supporting some of the initiatives NUL is implementing as part of its strategic plan to play a role in fostering economic growth and human development in the country. He said the ministry will continue to support the NUL to enable it to achieve some of its intended development plans.

 Also speaking at the occassionwas the NUL Vice Chancellor Professor Nqosa Mahao who applauded all for the cooperation and commitment demonstrated to make the university comparable with other universities through programmes and research. He said the Council should start search for people who will manage NUL as the contracts for some of the top managers in the council including himself will be expiring towards the end of this year.

 He said the council should also consider pending programmes intended to be implemented at the University for development. He expressed concern over the declining subvention from government saying it dropped from M132 million in 2008 to M65 million in 2019. He said a lot has to be done to solicit funding from elsewhere to ensure that the University can achieve implementation of its planned programmes. This was the third annual general meeting that was intended to present the audited financial statements and the Vice Chancellor's report for the past year.

Lena