The Cultural Affairs Office in the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Harare is exploring new areas to boost cooperation in students and staff exchanges, research collaborations, staff development and capacitation as well as technology transfer.
Speaking during a meeting with the HIT Vice Chancellor on Thursday 20 February 2020, the Cultural Affairs Officer in the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Harare, Mr Jason C. Roberts said that there are a lot of areas that the United States Embassy in Harare can work together with HIT and come out with different outcomes. We can help create relations between HIT and U.S universities, facilitate more exchange programmes for your students and staff to visit the United States of America and Americans to also visit your university. There are also opportunities to collaborate on research, hosting of workshops, public lectures, competitions and Hackathons. We can also help the university to protect its Intellectual Properties, said Mr Jason Roberts.
HIT Vice Chancellor, Eng. Q.C Kanhukamwe welcomed the initiative by the US Embassy Cultural Office saying interactions between the United States and HIT have not only enthused the university, but has strengthened the motivation to raise the bar. "We have some concepts in our curriculum that we adopted from the American Education Model, especially in the way we groom our students including our students' internship programme. Our students and lecturers have also benefited a lot from the US Exchange Programmes," he said.
HIT has a Memorandum of Understating with the University of District of Columbia (UDC) Centre for Entrepreneurship, Leadership and International Development (CELID), signed in May 2016. The agreement is focused on enhancing the two institutions' national and international reputation through institutional development by establishing cooperation in areas related to sustainable urban food management, renewable energy harvesting, water conservation, job creation through entrepreneurship and the development of management and leadership capacity to ensure continuous national development.
The Stanford University Business School's is also seeking potential synergies with HIT on research and entrepreneurship development through its Institute for Innovation in Developing Economies which run the Stanford Seed Project.
Some HIT students and staff have also visited the United States to attend some mentorship and exchange programmes, study tours, workshops, conferences and Summer Schools.
Microsoft Corporation has also been attracted to HIT and the two institutions established a smart partnership.
The Cultural Affairs Office in the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy offers different cultural / arts programmes designed to enhance mutual understanding among the people of Zimbabwe and the United States of America.
