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06 January 2025 | Story Anthony Mthembu | Photo Supplied
Prof Solomon Werta
Prof Solomon Werta, UFS alumnus and Vice-President: Administration and Development at Dire Dawa University, continues to inspire as one of Ethiopia's youngest leaders in higher education.

Throughout the progression of his career, the UFS alumnus, Prof Solomon Werta – Vice-President: Administration and Development at the Dire Dawa University (DDU) – has been the ‘youngest’ to occupy positions of leadership in several instances. 

In fact, the DDU appointed Prof Werta as Vice-President: Research and Community Service in 2020, making him the youngest vice-president of any public university in Ethiopia. According to Prof Werta, when it comes to senior management roles in universities and government, the norm is that the positions are held by middle-aged, mature leaders. However, after a unanimous vote by senate members at the university, he assumed that role at the age of 31. “Holding such a senior position at that age makes me a role model not only for a generation of young people, but for those at the University of the Free State who may be following my career,” Prof Werta stated. 

What the role entailed 

As Vice-President: Research and Community Service, he was responsible for driving research, innovation, technology transfer, community engagement, and growth within the institution and the community at large. As such, some of his highlights within this role include establishing a university community radio station to serve both the university and the Dire Dawa community, establishing new university journals such as the Harla journal, and establishing a nationally accredited institutional review board, among others. 

He occupied this role until November 2023 when he was promoted to his current role as Vice-President: Administration and Development at the DDU. Prof Werta credits this most recent promotion to the dedication and hard work he put into his previous role, as well as the knowledge and experience he acquired during his time at the UFS. 

In recognition of his work as a researcher within the Department of Physics at the DDU, Prof Werta was also promoted to Associate Professor in Physics. As a result, he indicates that he can be regarded as the youngest associate professor of physics in Ethiopia. Therefore, he continues to contribute to his institution and beyond on these accounts. 

What the future holds 

Prof Werta indicated that he plans on continuing to make strides as his career progresses, particularly in his role as Vice-President: Administration and Development. “I’d like to focus on increasing the university’s internal revenue, particularly through urban farming and other businesses using our academics,” said Prof Werta. In addition, he would also like to work on changing the university’s internal business practices, particularly the automation and digitalisation of the university system and the implementation of a contemporary university property management system, among others. 

News Archive

Colloquium on legal ethics
2006-03-22

The Department of Constitutional Law and Philosophy of Law at the University of the Free State (UFS) presented a colloquium on legal ethics.  The topic was The churches and the legality of abortion in South Africa.
 

 

 

 Some of the speakers at the colloquium were front from the left Cardinal Wilfrid Napier (Head:  Roman Catholic Church in South Africa), Mr Jeffery Ventrella Esq (guest speaker and Deputy Director, Alliance Defence Fund, United States of America) and Mrs Miranda Pillay (representative of the Anglican Church of South Africa and from the  Faculty of Theology at the University of the Western Cape). In the middle from the left were Dr Michiel du Rand (General Surgeon,  School of Medicine, University of Pretoria), Ms Jeanine McGill (Abortion Activist and Secretary of the ACDP, Western Cape), Prof Etienne de Villiers (representative of the Dutch Reformed Church and from the Faculty of Theology at the University of Pretoria) and Prof Jakobus Vorster (Dean: Faculty of Theology, University of the North West). Back from the left were  Mr Shaun de Freitas (organiser of the colloquium and senior lecturer at the UFS Department of Constitutional Law and Philosophy of Law) and Mr John Smyth QC (legal representative of 'Doctors for Life', South Africa). 
Photo: Stephen Collett

 

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