Ouagadougou: Thomas Sankara University (UTS) has taken a major step in its operation by celebrating, on Friday in Ouagadougou, the official graduation of 2,094 Bachelor's degree graduates, thus marking the reduction of academic delays and the return to a normal academic calendar, said the president of the institution, Professor T. Didier Zoungrana, on Friday.
According to Burkina Information Agency, the new graduates come from the Training and Research Units (UFR) of legal and political sciences, economic and management sciences, science and technology, the university institute of initial and continuing training as well as the university centers of Tenkodogo and Dori. They received their diplomas during a ceremony presided over by the Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, Professor Adjima Thiombiano.
The president of UTS, Pr T. Didier Zoungrana, stated that this promotion, named "Combativity Promotion", is the result of the combined efforts of the university administration, teacher-researchers, administrative, technical, worker and support staff (ATOS) as well as the students. "This ceremony symbolizes a university now capable of awarding degrees within normal academic timeframes," he said, recalling that just a few years ago, students faced significant delays between obtaining their baccalaureate and the actual start of classes.
The university president stressed that UTS was among the first public institutions in Burkina Faso to have undertaken a process of standardizing academic years, well before the national reforms currently underway.
For Minister Professor Adjima Thiombiano, this ceremony marks the "complete normalization" of Thomas Sankara University. He explained that the simultaneous graduation of 2,094 students and the closing of the academic year demonstrate adherence to the planned course hours and programs across all Bachelor's degree programs. According to him, this achievement allows the institution to definitively turn the page on the overlapping academic years that have long hampered its operations. He clarified that the graduates include both students who completed their studies within the regulatory timeframe and those who had accumulated delays in previous years.
The minister also announced that 72 academic programs have been revised to align curricula with national realities and job market demands. These new programs will take effect at the start of the next academic year. He further highlighted the investments made by the government under the Presidential Initiative for Quality Education for All, including the construction of nearly 25 lecture halls in less than two years, with a target of 40 university facilities over five years, as well as the acquisition of more than 500 buses to improve student transportation.
Professor Thiombiano finally announced the introduction, starting next academic year, of mandatory civic and patriotic training in all Bachelor's and Master's degree programs, in order to strengthen the values of civic duty, patriotism and commitment among university youth.
The representative of the graduates, Alphonse Delwend© Kiendreb©ogo, welcomed the reforms undertaken by the university and government authorities, believing that this class opens a new chapter for UTS and for Burkinabe higher education.