Institute of Leadership and Good Governance Graduates Students
The ECSU Institute of Leadership and Good Governance for the first time graduated 67 students with MA degree on Saturday, February 16, 2013. Established in 2010, the ECSU post-graduate Institute of Leadership and Good Governance has been supported by the French government and UNDP.
Speaking at the graduation Ceremony President of ECSU, Dr. Hailemichael Abera, underlined the need for competent and committed leaders to ensure the prevalence of good governance in the country. He said by learning from the experiences of France and other countries, the Institute of Leadership and Good Governance was established two years ago. The institute, according to the president, has so far accepted 188 students in three batches, 63 of them, including eight students graduating with the first batch, are women. He called upon the graduates to serve the public as leading is serving.
The guest of honor, Minister of Civil Service with the rank of Deputy Prime Minister, Muktar Kedir, said the government has been making multi-faceted efforts to transform the civil service of the country. Muktar further said that
" the Civil Service Reform Program has made significant contribution in combating poverty. "
He noted that the government is aware of the need to address the still wide gap in leadership and has committed itself to enhancing the capacity of the top management as the pillar of the reform package. He said leaders at all levels need to be trained as training is at the very heart of expanding and promoting good governance.
The government of France has been supporting the Ethiopian government to establish a leadership institute for the past seven years and it has been providing financial support to Institute of Leadership and Good Governance since its establishment. French Ambassador to Ethiopia, Brigitte Collet, who was in attendance at the graduation ceremony, said,
“Today after seven years of intense work, the first batch of graduates are coming out of the institute. It is a great satisfaction for us to have contributed for this remarkable event.”
She underlined that the graduates can contribute by managing projects, by playing an important role in the dialogue between regions and the Federal government.
Competent leaders, according to Collet, are also essential to have efficient and good quality services all over the country. She also emphasized that good leaders would work to ensure the respect of the rule of law, which would attract foreign investors to the country. While concluding her speech, the ambassador, reaffirmed her government’s commitment to continue supporting the ECSU Institute of Leadership and Good Governance in the future.
UNDP Deputy Country Director, Bettina Woll, on her part said that UNDP believes specialized training institute such as the Institute of Leadership and Good Governance can contribute to the nation’s effort of consolidating democratic governance and ensuring rapid and sustainable development. She added that UNDP also believes that nurturing and enhancing good governance is a key pillar of the development of the country and a tool to foster growth and transformation. While reassuring that UNDP would continue to support the institute She said
“UNDP’s support of this program is rooted in our conviction good governance is strategically important,”
The guest of honor, Muktat Kedir, who is also an alumnus of ECSU handed over degrees to the graduates and a medal and a special award to two outstanding students.
Through their representative the graduates announced that they have established alumni with the goal of strengthening the institute, producing research ideas, scaling up best practices, supporting students during their internship among others. They also donated 20,000 birr for the Grand Renaissance Dam.