SUVA, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- The University of the South Pacific (USP), headquartered in Suva, capital of Fiji, marked on Monday its 50th anniversary of establishment with the participation of Fijian President Jioji Konrote.
Speaking at the anniversary celebration here on Monday, Konrote said USP, which was established in 1968, is the pride of the Pacific region.
The 50th anniversary seeks to recognize the achievements of the university and the contribution of the institution to its alumni and communities and the Pacific, he said.
USP Vice Chancellor Rajesh Chandra thanked the member countries and other nations who have supported the tertiary institution for the past 50 years, during that period, USP has had more than 50,000 graduates. Each year the university enrols students from all pacific member countries with the aim of providing better education for them.
Currently, USP has 30,000 students, 50,000 alumni and millions of dollars in development assistance. USP has offered academic qualifications in areas such as Education, Sciences, Business and Economics, Languages, Societies and Cultures and Marine studies. Over the years, Tourism and Hospitality, Human Resources, Climate Change, and Information Communication Technology (ICT) were added to reflect the changing region and equip students for success in the global Knowledge Economy.
Chandra said that what makes USP unique is the way it is grounded in the Pacific culture and way of life and responds to what is important to its member countries.
The university has contributed immensely to the development of human resources in the region by ensuring quality graduates, who are contributing at different levels in their communities and countries, said Chandra.
The Pacific Island's Forum Secretariat, which is based in Suva, Fiji, said that the USP is owned by 12 member countries -- Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Samoa.
"We must acknowledge and celebrate the vision of our leaders, who began this journey half a century ago, to provide our peoples with higher learning on our shores; cultivating a common sense of identity based on our shared history and geography, and recognizing that we would achieve more together than individually,"said Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Dame Meg Taylor said on Monday.
"Fifty years later, the USP remains a flourishing symbol of our region's determination to do and think for itself," Taylor said.
