By DOH JAMES SONKEY IN YAOUNDE
Cameroon’s Minister of Higher Education and Chancellor of Academic Orders, Prof Jacques Fame Ndongo has been elected Chair of the Council of Higher Education Ministers of Africa and Madagascar better known by its French acronym as CAMES.
Prof Fame Ndongo who was also made Commander of the International Order of Academic Palms of CAMES at the occasion will serve the council for two years after he was elected in the early morning of May 26, 2017 by the 19 member countries as they met in their 34th Session from May 22 to 26 2017 at the Yaoundé Conference Centre.
Dedicating his election and prize to President Paul Biya, the other CAMES Ministers of Higher Education and officials of the Ministry of Higher Education in Cameroon, Minister Jacques Fame Ndongo said he was overwhelmed with this mark of recognition from his colleagues of Africa and Madagascar.
The CAMES member countries equally used the occasion to renew the mandate of Prof Bertrand Mbatchi as their Secretary General, elected a new Director of Programmes in charge of Quality Insurance and also voted over FCFA 4 billion as budget for the Council of Higher Education Ministers of Africa and Madagascar, CAMES.
The new CAMES Chair told reporters that his mandate’s challenge will include among others of organizing the golden jubilee of their council in Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso, Niamey in Niger and probably in other member countries.
He stressed that “As prescribed by the President of the Republic, H.E Paul Biya and the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Philemon Yang, we as leaders of universities shall pursue with quality insurance, the professionalization of studies and employability so that graduates should get decent, secured and pertinent jobs. We want to promote through CAMES, an Africa of science, knowledge and competence for a brighter future of our continent.”
Prof Fame Ndongo underlined that as a structure that enhances and promotes quality and professionalization, CAMES is bent at training the intellectual elite and leaders of tomorrow as demanded by Heads of State of the 19 members.
The Cameroon Minister of Higher Education takes over the chairmanship of CAMES from Senegalese Minister of Higher Education and Research.