The New President Holds Discussion with Staff
The newly appointed president of Ethiopian Civil Service University, Professor Fikre Dessalegn, has been holding an introductory meeting with the University community. Professor Fikre met with the academic wing directors on November 16, 2016. He also met with the management support services directors and research and community services directors on November 17, 2016.
During the meetings, he said he is honored to be part of the University. He also applauded the University`s contribution in the country`s social, economic and political achievements. The contribution of the graduates of the University is felt in every sector as most of them are the main actors from the lower tier of the government to ministerial level. You should be proud of this, because it is you who shape their attitudes to become public servant he underscored.
In the occasion Professor Fikre raised curiosity questions which he believed that they will give him a glimpse of how the University is working. The questions included, among others, students` admission, modularization, instructors` class management, course offerings, expatriate staff period allotment, the new structure and research and community services. Professor Samson Kassahun and Ato Birhanu Belayneh with their team had given brief explanations on the issues.
Professor Samson in the occasion explained the journey of the University since its establishment. “When the University started as a college, it was organized in faculty. To meet the growing demands of the public sectors, a need arise to reorganize the faculties in institutes," said Professor Samson. Regarding the student instructor ratio, it is one instructor to twenty students, which is well in the ideal level. He also said that some institutes like Institute of tax and Customs Administration, Institute of Leadership and Good Governance and School of Diplomacy and International Relations are opened following the requests of federal ministries.
Ato Birhanu Belayneh also explained the core works of research and community services and the overall structure.
Professor Fikre finally stressed on the need to exert concerted efforts to achieve the vision of the University- to become a leading center of excellence in public sector capacity building in Africa by 2025. To achieve this, we need to examine the organizational structure, staff profile, research capacity, facility, IT infrastructure, library of the university which are believed to excel in the areas, said in conclusion.
Professor Fikre Dessalegn is a professor of Plant Ecology and Systematics. He received B.Sc. in Biology (1994) and M.Sc. in Botany (1999) from Addis Ababa University, and a Ph.D. in Biology (2006) in a sandwich scheme from Universities of Addis Ababa & Oslo.
He has served at various academic leadership positions for more than a decade. He served as Registrar and Vice President for Academic and Research posts at Dilla University. He had also served as Vice President for Academic Affairs of Hawassa University, for five years until he was appointed as president of ECSU.