On 06 May 2016, CUT and Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality (MMM) realized their dream when they formalized their relations during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). 

The newly formalised collaboration aims to bring CUT and MMM together to focus on exploiting their organisational strengths and develop partnership projects that will enhance social and technological innovations, which will in turn bring solutions to the current challenges faced and beyond. In his welcoming address, Prof. Henk de Jager, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Engagement, mentioned that the union between the two entities is part of an endeavor for CUT as an engaged university. He further highlighted that the Innovation and Entrepreneurship strategy launched earlier this year will be the driving force towards the economic liberation that the region is in dire need of. 

The Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Prof. Thandwa Mthembu said that this day is a happy day as it proves that CUT is a university of action, referring to his sabbatical leave, he shared ideas which included the role that universities can play to uplift the economy of their cities. “What we are doing today is a practical manifestation of what we have been talking about for a number of years. “Our partnership with the City offers a fresh perspective on global trends that are practiced by successful regions in the world. Others will learn from us about how regional success can be achieved when a university and a municipality plan together and invest resources in a collaborative manner. Today, we are here to develop a path that will link the high levels of skill and knowledge to the city and meet the needs for development, he concluded. Cllr Thabo Manyoni, Executive Mayor of Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality said that he is delighted that the partnership between them is formalised.  “My vision is to have an innovation and an incubation hub where all the creative and innovative minds can be under one roof and work together as a team to make creations a reality. I am glad that we will be working closely with CUT and utilizing their knowledge and skills in making sure that we get this city to tick and grow immensely,” he said. The envisaged areas of cooperation states that:

The two parties agree to co-operate and work in consultation with each another on conceptualisation, development and support for the training and skills development, research and innovation, special projects, consultation services, work integrated learning, city planning and development, science and innovation ecosystem and entities.

Images 

1:   Cllr Conny Rampai, Deputy Executive Mayor of Mangaung, Cllr Thabo Manyoni,  Executive Mayor of Mangaung, Prof. Thandwa Mthembu, Vice-Chancellor and Principal and Prof. Henk de Jager, DVC: Research, Innovation and Engagement. 

2:  Formally signing the MoU and thereby cementing the collaboration, Executive Mayor, Cllr Thabo Manyoni and Prof. Thandwa Mthembu Vice-Chancellor and Principal.