I am confident that the Centers of Excellence programme will unlock a flood of latent talent and creativity in communities whose opportunities to show their mettle had been so severely limited in the past. These Centers will contribute towards helping the young people of today become productive citizens of a future South Africa, made prosperous by the innovative ideas and familiarity with technology of its young entrepreneurs. This training will also constitute a massive transfer of technological skills and knowledge where they can be most fruitfully and effectively used for the future benefit of the country. To achieve all this, a partnership is required. A partnership between government, labour, the private sector and civil society, to harness technology in order to catapult South Africa into the information revolution of the 21st century.
Education is the most powerful weapon in the hands of our people.
We need to close the widening development and inequality gap between black and white, rich and poor, urban and rural, women and men, and North and South. Technology is a potent equalising and transformative force in bridging the legacy of apartheid. But it requires a deep commitment from the intellectual capacity of our students and academic. Our Deputy President Thabo Mbeki made a passionate call for an African Renaissance. We must rebel against the tyrants and dictators, those who seek to corrupt our societies and steal the wealth that belongs to our people.