ST. AUGUSTINE UNIVERSITY

OF TANZANIA

 

P.O. Box 307

Mwanza, Tanzania

  

Background  for

Fund Raising Needs

 

2002-2004

 Tel: 255-028-2552725, 2550560, 2550166

e-mail:  saut@africaonline.co.tz

Fax:  255-028-2550167, 2500575

Website: http://saut.ac.tz.tripod.com

 

Background of the New University

 

EAST AFRICAN COUNTRIES share the problems of most sub-Saharan states, including: a poor, undereducated population, insufficient food production and limited storage to provide for periodic droughts and famines; diversion of income to finance costly debt service; government corruption, mismanagement and squandering of resources; civil war and tribal conflict. 

TANZANIA IS BETTER OFF than other countries in some of these respects but, along with other nearby countries, it has two critical needs: (1) better education for the people as a whole, and (2) competent training of skilled and principled leaders.  Without good leaders and skilled managers, development efforts will be haphazard and ineffective; and lacking a well-educated citizenry, the country will never be in a position to demand good government.

 NSTI Founded in 1960

  COGNIZANT OF THE NEED for intelligent and ethically sensitive leaders, the While Fathers (Missionaries of Africa) founded the Nyegezi Social Training Institute (NSTI) in 1960 to train promising men and women from the newly independent countries of East and Central Africa in the skills and values required to advance the development of their countries and enable their people to survive and prosper.  The bishops of Tanzania (Tanzania Episcopal Conference) assumed control of the Nyegezi Social Training Institute in 1975.

 

DURING ITS 38-YEAR EXISTENCE, the Nyegezi Institute prepared nearly 2,500 graduates from Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Zambia, Burundi and Malawi in the fields of Accountancy, Journalism and Communications, Materials Management and Health Administration.  Nyegezi’s graduates are doing valuable work--many of them in leadership positions--in government, private enterprise and church-related institutions throughout East and Central Africa.

Meeting a Larger Challenge

  IN THE 30 YEARS SINCE the University of Dar es Salaam was established (1970), Tanzania, with a population of close to 30 million people, has seen fewer than 20,000 university graduates.  In 1995, Tanzania opened the door to private universities, and it was clear to the bishops of Tanzania that the Church, which has always been a prime sponsor in the pursuit of wisdom and learning, should not pass up this opportunity to manifest the Church’s role in promoting human and moral values.

  They wanted also to show the integral relationship of religion and society, and to prepare college educated and resourceful men and women dedicated to working out a decent future for the people of Tanzania.  The Bishops decided to convert the Nyegezi Social Training Institute into St. Augustine University of Tanzania.  In April 1997, the government returned to the Church the nearby 575-acre property taken over in 1967 from what was then the Diocese of Mwanza.  Tanzania had used this property for the former Ministry of Agriculture Training Institute (MATI) in the village of Malimbe, and now it was made available for use by the new University.

  THE ORIENTATION OF St. Augustine University is based on a realistic appraisal of the needs of people and society in East and Central Africa and areas where the church’s voice needs to be heard.  (Its motto, drawing upon St. Augustine, is “Building the City of God”.)  Students are trained to search for understanding through intelligent questioning and to build a future based on sound moral values.  At the same time, they enjoy strong professional training that equips them for employment as managers, planners, and researchers.

  Growth of a University

 ST. AUGUSTINE UNIVERSITY of Tanzania began in September 1998 with a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication.  This was followed in 1999 by a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, with specialisations in Accounting and Finance, Marketing Management, and Human and Material Resources Management.  A B.S. in Computer Science is planned for 2002.  The Master’s degree in Mass Communication should start in 2004, the Master’s in Business Administration in 2005, and the B.A. and Master's in English in 2006.  In meeting the urgent needs of the Lake Victoria region for well-trained office staff, a Certificate in Secretarial Science will be introduced in the year 2003, with other degree programs to come later.

 

THE NYEGEZI SOCIAL TRAINING INSTITUTE’S Courses (Advanced Diplomas in Accountancy, Materials Management, and Journalism, and Certificate programmes in Accountancy and Health Administration) have been incorporated, along with the Bachelor’s and planned Master’s degrees, into the new University.  During the seven years from 1998 to 2004, enrolment is planned to increase from the present student body of 280 to approximately 930.  The ultimate size of St. Augustine University of Tanzania will likely be in the range of 2000 students.

Need for Financial Assistance

 THE CAMPUS AT MALIMBE was used by the Tanzania government for the Ministry of Agriculture Training Institute (MATI) from 1967 to 1995.  A broad, fertile property of 575 acres located in a rural area only 10 km from the city of Mwanza, it is ideally suited for use as the site of the new University.  It is also within easy walking distance from the campus of the former Nyegezi Social Training Institute, from which the University has developed.

  THE TANZANIAN GOVERNMENT saw this potential when it took over the property in 1967 during the era of African socialism.  (That period and its emphasis are now past and, with Tanzania in dire need of stronger education, the government is solidly committed to fostering private institutions.)  It was an excellent location for its agricultural training institute, and it was used effectively for this purpose for many years.

A Foundation to Build On

  DURING THE 1980’S, the German government invested millions of Deutschmarks in building and equipping close to 100 structures on campus: class rooms, academic buildings and laboratories, student hostels, lavatories and showers, faculty houses and offices, utility structures, farm buildings, and an efficient irrigation  system drawing water from Lake Victoria.  Well constructed and appropriately located in areas not used for farming, these structures are solid and sturdy.  They will all be used by the University and should last for at least several decades.

  FOR ITS LAST THREE YEARS, the agricultural institute had been sitting idle.  Even before that, the government had little money to invest in upkeep of the buildings and the irrigation system, and these facilities gradually fell into disrepair.  With so many valuable buildings at its disposal, the University clearly needs sufficient funds to make them usable.  The grant requests listed in the next column cover the renovation of most of these useful structures.

  The Spirit That Gives Life 

THE GRANT REQUESTS that accompany this back ground information are of critical importance for the success of St. Augustine University.  They are an expression of hope and encouragement for the next generation of young people ready to lead the people of Tanzania and elsewhere into a bright and stable future.  Your thoughtful and generous support of these proposals will be deeply appreciated.

 

Please address contacts to:

 

Fr. D. Rweyongeza, Vice Chancellor

St. Augustine University of Tanzania

P.O. Box 307

Mwanza, Tanzania

 

Grants Needed

for Renovation of Major Facilities

and Related Services

                                                             

                                                                Total  (Tshs)

1.   Four Classrooms @ Tshs 3.92m 

      and Lavatory @ Tshs 11m                               26,680,000.00

2.   15 Faculty Offices @ Tshs 1.482m                  22,230,000.00

3.   Seven Student Hostels  @ Tshs 9.6m            67,200,000.00

4.   Chapel                                                                    7,920,000.00

5.   Dispensary                                                          10,861,810.00

6.   20 Faculty Houses @ 2.9925m                         59,850,000.00

7.   Computer Centre                                                11,520,000.00

8.   Main Hall                                                               4,320,000.00

9.   Photo Lab and Training Centre                         6,700,000.00

10.  Television Studio & Training Centre             16,200,000.00

11.  Library                                                                21,630,000.00

12.  Four Seminar Rooms in two

        buildings @ 5.1m per building                       10,200,000.00

13.  Irrigation System                                               50,400,000.00

14.  Water & Electrical Connections

        and Sewage                                                       10,200,000.00

15.  Endowment Fund                                              40,000,000.00

              Total                                                           365,911,810.00

  

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