Luanda – The Angolan Government Friday here reiterated the engagement in the betterment of higher education quality, guaranteeing its sustainable development and adjusting it to the economic, social and cultural reality of the country.

It was said by the Prime Minister, António Paulo Kassoma, who was speaking at the opening ceremony of the academic year in private and public universities of the country, taking place under the motto ‘’For a higher education directed to students, as the main beneficiaries”.

He considers imperious that a higher teaching institution meets previous and standardised requirements, which are accepted internationally, and has human and material resources and a curricular plan that include the local needs of development.

"The university is a source of transmission of scientific knowledge, but it should also be the solution for concrete problems facing the society’’, he said.

The Prime Minister also referred for the need to establish scientific research programmes applied to searching the balance between the individual options of the people and the needs for resources destined to serve the national and local objectives of harmonious, balanced and sustainable development.

He spoke of the need to carry out a dialoguing and participative reform in the higher education, underlining that the rehabilitation and construction works of infrastructures aiming at guaranteeing better education.

Paulo Kassoma said that the opening of academic year takes place in a context of consolidation of peace, national reconciliation, macroeconomic stability and accomplishment of the government programme, while at international level it is characterised by the financial and economic crisis.

He declared that despite the crisis the Government will try to comply with its plan for 2009, that foresees among others the reassessment of Agostinho Neto University in academic areas, to train teaching staff and technical personnel, to build and equip academic and social infrastructures for the six new academic regions.

It will also reappraise and readjust the project of Agostinho Neto University Campus, aiming at its conclusion and beginning of its activity, guaranteeing the increase of internal and exterior scholarships in priority training fields.

He regarded as positive the opening of private universities from 1999, stressing that in 1977 Agostinho Neto University had only 1,117 students, and in 2008 the number rose to 85,876 students.

The opening ceremony was attended by MPs, members of the government and diplomatic body, principals of public and private universities, representatives of professional associations and orders, journalists, among other guests.

For the inaugural speech was invited university lecturer, Fernandes Vecino Alegret, who for 20 years, was minister of Education and Higher Education of the Socialist Republic of Cuba.

The ceremony was animated by exhibitions presented by choral and theatre groups made up of students from Jean Piaget and Angola Private Universities.