Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy


Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy is an undergraduate university dating back to the dawn of Tanzania's independence in 1961. It is located in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It took over the assets and functions of the former Kivukoni Academy of Social Sciences.

Historical Background

The Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy emerged from an institution once called Kivukoni College.

Phase 1

In February, 1958 the National Conference of TANU which was held in Tabora passed a Resolution to establish a college for adults in the lines of Ruskin College in Oxford. The College was to be a tool for spreading understanding of social, political and economic problems facing underdeveloped countries such as Tanganyika among people who were likely to become leaders in the newly independent country but who did not have qualifications necessary to enter educational institutions. The Adult College was formally established on 29 July 1961 as a private company under Companies Ordinance and named Kivukoni College. While inaugurating Kivukoni College, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, the President of TANU and the Prime Minister of Tanganyika by then had this to say about the name.
“The name of this College is significant. It is not just the question of
the site being of crossing place physically. Tanganyika itself is at the
crossing place now; on December 9th, we assume new and great
responsibilities. We shall need a strong and able crew to effect a safe
journey, and every student must become part of that crew. But first
he/she has his/her own crossing to make; a crossing to wide
understanding and to new opportunities for service”.
Regarding the adult college, he said:
“…Kivukoni College is not intended to be a College for an Elite, it is
intended to make a contribution to the development of all the people.
To come here as a student is to be given a wonderful opportunity and a
privilege. The responsibility is proportionately great. If any student
ever tried to divorce himself/herself from the people who indirectly sent
him/her here he/she would be abusing the privilege but I do not believe
that will happen. The graduates of Kivukoni must be like the yeast in a
loaf, effective because it cannot be isolated, its presence being known
by the work it had done….”
The College opened with only 43 students. Subjects taught were Political Science, History, Sociology, Literature, Geography, Administration, Law, Modern Languages plus other relevant subjects.

Phase 2

In 1971 Kivukoni College was transformed into an Ideological College. The College
was considered best suited to inculcate the Party Ideology of Socialism and Self-
Reliance. The main functions of Kivukoni Ideological College were:
Kivukoni Ideological College had eight zonal colleges, namely Zanzibar, Lushoto,
Murutunguru, Hombolo, Msaginya, Mahiwa, Kihinga and Ilonga.
They offered the following subjects:
  1. Ideology and Politics
  2. History – The History of the Party
  3. Political Economy
  4. Management and Administration
  5. People's Combat and
  6. Social Science Research Methodology.
All zonal colleges except Zanzibar were closed and handed-over to the Tanzania
Government in 1992, at the end of the one party state and the adoption of a multi-party system from 1 July 1992.

Phase 3

The college was transformed into an academic institution and re-named Kivukoni Academy of Social Sciences.
The Memorandum and Articles of Association which established Kivukoni Academy
of Social Sciences gave mandate to the Academy to undertake the following
functions:
In terms of training programmes, KASS offered a one-year Certificate in Youth Work
and two year Diploma Programmes in Social Studies, Economic Development and
Gender Issues in Development.

Phase 4

A national need for expansion of higher education resulted in Kivukoni Academy being made a public higher learning institution. The
Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy was established by an Act of Parliament in 2005. The new name was to honour and recognize the contribution of Nyerere as the father of the nation and the founder of Kivukoni College. The Academy is regarded as a prestigious home-grown Tanzanian institution, largely focused on education and training and with some research conducted by individual staff members, many of whom hold PhDs from local and international universities.

Functions of the Academy

The Academy has the following functions:
programmes;
The Academy is a legal and viable institution which was awarded Full Registration
and Full Accreditation at NTA Level 8 with The National
Council for Technical Education on 21 May 2002 and 30 November,
2005 respectively.

Location

The Dar Es Salaam campus is in Kivukoni in Temeke District, Dar es
Salaam. Its location is along the shores of the Indian Ocean and one kilometre
south of the Kigamboni side Ferry ghat. From Dar es Salaam city centre, one reaches the Academy by two ways; either by driving through Kongowe which takes forty five minutes or by Pontoon which operates 24 hours on daily basis. The Pontoon ferries both people and vehicles and it takes about five minutes to cross the Magogoni Creek.
The Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy in Zanzibar is in Bububu area in West Unguja District.
The main Academy site is protected from coastal erosion by a seawall, built with funding from the UNEP and the U.S.-based Adaptation Fund. The Ecologist journal questions why the Academy buildings were favoured preferentially in coastal protection works, while more vulnerable locations are still exposed to storm surges and rising sea levels.

Programmes

Degree Programmes:
Diploma Programmes:
'''Certificate Programme

Malaysia