Ministry of Lands Principal Secretary, Nixon Korir, on Friday, June 16, was delighted with students graduating from the Kenya Institute of Surveying and Mapping.
The PS, who presided over the 13th graduation ceremony, underlined that the institution was vital in managing land resources in the country.
As a result, Korir announced that the government will kickstart the process of elevating the institution into a government agency to empower more students in surveying and mapping data, which is used to plan and design roads, railways, bridges, and other infrastructure.
"The government plans to elevate the status of the college, which is a training arm of the State Department of Lands and Physical Planning, to a Semi-Autonomous Government Agency to increase its performance and efficiency," PS Nixon's statement read in parts.
The graduands are key professionals in monitoring and managing the environment through tracking deforestation, pollution, border control and disaster response.
Korir encouraged the 457 graduates awarded Diplomas and Craft Certificates in photogrammetry and remote sensing, cartography, land survey and printing technology to put their knowledge into productive use immediately.
He also recognised the exemplary performance of graduands from the Ruaraka-based college, noting that the institute had been training professionals who can perform well at home and abroad.
“The graduates we send out into the job market are competent and resourceful to perform land management duties in our country and abroad,” PS Korir stated.
He argued that one of the key reasons graduates are locked out of employment was failure to join relevant professional bodies.
Korir, therefore, asked the institution to continue re-modelling its courses in a manner that will solve emerging issues in society.
“KISM has been a focal point in the transfer of Geo-information knowledge within the East, Central and Southern Africa regions. This has been possible through the Third Country Group Training programmes,” PS Korir observed.
The Kenya Institute of Surveying and Mapping, he added, also collaborated with Kenya International Boundaries Office (KIBO) to train staff from Kenya, Tanzania and South Sudan in short courses to empower them to reaffirm and map their common international boundaries.
"KISM is a Centre of Excellence in the Northern Corridor Integration Project (NCIP) involving Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan in the human capacity cluster," he affirmed.
