The USP Council meets at the Laucala Campus [1]
Sunday, November 6, 2011 - 06:07. Updated on Wednesday, September 11, 2013 - 09:54.
THE 73rd USP Council meeting was held at the Video Conference Room of the Japan-Pacific ICT Centre at USP's Laucala Campus from 3 - 4 November 2011. The Council normally meets twice a year to discuss the affairs of the University.
The first meeting this year was held in Rarotonga, Cook Islands in May. The Council is the highest decision making body of the University and comprises representatives of the 12 member country governments, academic staff, and student, community and business leaders. Representatives of Australia and New Zealand and a member of the CROP agency are also part of the Council.
The two-day meeting was chaired by the Pro-Chancellor and Chair of Council, Honourable Fiame N. Mata'afa, Minister for Justice, Samoa. In her welcoming remarks, the Honourable Fiame Mata'afa thanked the members for their attendance to this important meeting of the University.
The Chair pointed out that as the University nears its 50th anniversary, more challenges and demands are on the University to take its performance to another level. In order to do that, she emphasised the need for the development of the next Strategic Plan, which will shape and make USP into a university of excellence. She therefore called on all members for their continued support and assistance.
In presenting his report, the Vice-Chancellor and President of USP, Professor Rajesh Chandra echoed the sentiments expressed by the Pro-Chancellor. He highlighted the following achievements since the last Council Meeting in May, which the Council acknowledged with appreciation:
The construction of Phase II of the Japan-Pacific ICT Centre was completed on time and the ceremonial handover of keys took place in October;
The third Vice-Chancellors Forum on Learning and Teaching was held at the Laucala Campus to engage staff on the topic of 'Thinking about teaching better: Four challenges of fine universities', which was presented by the key note speaker Professor Peter McPhee from the University of Melbourne;
USP and Australia signed an agreement governing the upgrade to the AARNet project, worth AUD 1,131,294, on 7 July. The upgrade will result in a quadrupling of bandwidth, which will be sufficient to meet the University's needs and requests from students and staff for increased speed;
The University Grants Committee recently concluded its mid-term review. It has found that the University has made a very significant turn-around in all respects and is well placed to face future challenges;
His Excellency Sir Frank Ofagioro Kabui, Governor General of the Solomon Islands, was installed as the new Chancellor of the University during the Laucala Campus Graduation ceremony in September;
There was an increase in the number of students graduating at the postgraduate level at the Laucala and Cook Islands Campus Graduation ceremonies. This is consistent with the University's intention to increase the proportion of postgraduate enrolments and to increase research; and
The Pacific Islands Centre for Public Administration (PICPA) has commenced operation since the beginning of August with the appointment of Professor Peter Larmour as the Interim Director.
Professor Chandra also highlighted the strategies for 2012 and beyond to transform the University into a higher quality, more relevant and sustainable institution that is widely seen as valuable by stakeholders.
In addition to the development of the next Strategic Plan, activities in 2012 will be centred around four key themes, namely institutional sustainability; student success, transformation and academic excellence; human resource transformation; and regional engagement and delivery.
According to the Vice-Chancellor, achievement in these areas will guide the University toward its goal of becoming a university of excellence by its golden jubilee in 2018.
Major decisions of the Council
The Council deliberated on a number of reports and papers. Key decisions taken by the Council were:
Leadership of USP: The Council noted that the University had made a significant turnaround since the appointment of Professor Rajesh Chandra and expressed full confidence in his leadership at this critical time in the development of the institution;
USP Annual Plan and Budget for 2012: Approval of the USP Annual Plan and budget for next year with total income projected at $149.2m and total expenditure amounting to $143.5m;
ADB Soft Loan: Approval to proceed with a US$19m soft loan from the Asian Development Bank for regional campus development.
USP Funding Formula: The USP funding formula is to be retained in its current form with improvements to bring it more up-to-date. The overall member government contribution should continue to consist of the current two components (General and Special Grant) but have the components renamed as Student Grant and Campus Grant;
New Programmes: Two new programmes were instituted, which are Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) and Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical and Electronics). The University was congratulated on the development of the engineering programmes which directly responded to the needs of the region.
New Strategic Plan: The next USP Strategic Plan will be for a duration of six years (2013 2018), with the six priority areas in the current plan to remain as the main priorities, which are to be adopted as the focal areas for the new Strategic Plan; and
The USP Risk Management System: The Council held an interactive session on the University's Risk Management System during which members were updated on the Risk Register and mitigation taken by risk owners with respect to the risks in their various portfolios. The University's Audit and Risk Committee would be responsible for identifying and rating new risks.
Regional Copyright Licensing Agency: The Council approved in principle USPs proposal to participate in the establishment of a Regional Copyright Licensing Agency subject to final endorsement by the Deputy Chair of Council and the Chair of the Finance & Investments Committee.
The Chair on behalf of the Council noted with gratitude that the confidence of member countries and development partners remained very strong and extended its appreciation to all stakeholders for their support towards the University. The Japan-Pacific ICT Centre is an excellent example of Japan's bilateral assistance to Fiji for the university and the Government of Korea's assistance on renewable energy.
The Chair also thanked the Vice Chancellor, Staff and Students of the University for excellent work in 2011. Finally she thanked the Fiji Government for the hospitality extended to all members.
The Council meetings foe next year will be held in early May and early November respectively. The May 2012 meeting will be held in Vanuatu back-to-back with the Forum Education Ministers meeting. USP, 4/11/11.