The Vice Chancellor of the University of Namibia (UNAM), Kenneth Matengu, has appealed to the government for increased academic research funding to boost innovation, enhance academic excellence and support national development. 

He made the appeal while addressing graduates during the Southern UNAM Campus graduation ceremony held at Keetmanshoop, which saw 150 students graduating in various fields of study, including accounting, business administration, geology, law, medicine and media studies. 

Since its establishment, UNAM has produced 70,000 graduates nationwide and internationally, while the Southern Campus alone has conferred certificates, diplomas and degrees to more than 2,000 students in the past ten years. 

"When we do research, many things happen. When we don't do research, we don't know what we don't know. And when we don't know what we don't know, we are worse off than knowing what we don't know. Those who invest in research will know what we don't know, and they will tell us what we have and what we can or cannot do about it. We are losing economic sovereignty by not doing research."

Matengu urged the graduates to strive for success and become problem solvers by applying knowledge and skills acquired during their studies. 

A UNAM medical graduate, Dr. Jan Jacobs, who was invited as a guest speaker, also shared words of encouragement and inspiration with the graduating class. 

"There might be one of you here today who only studied what you did because a parent told you. Because it seemed to be the logical thing at the time. But it's never too late to take on something new."

The UNAM Southern Campus hosted the first of the eight graduation ceremonies scheduled to be held by the university this year.