KRG Ninth Cabinet will ‘always prioritize education,’ says PM Barzani
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Tuesday attended the graduation ceremony of the Catholic University in Erbil, where he delivered a speech.
“The ground we are standing on today is sacred in more ways than one. Not only is it the property of a church and a campus that has provided a first-rate education for youth from around the world, it is also built on lands that served as a sanctuary during some of the darkest times of our modern history,” the Prime Minister said.
“For all of you graduating today, I congratulate you.”
Barzani stated that as Nineveh and Sinjar were embattled during the rampage of the ISIS terror group, construction of the campus continued, which was completed in Dec. 2015. “Christians Yazidis, Kurds, and Muslims flocked to this area and all were received with grace and dignity.”
To the graduates of @CatholicUniErbi: I have been clear that our human capital is the greatest national asset we have.
— Masrour Barzani (@masrourbarzani) October 24, 2023
Your ideas, products and inventions will need to cater to the needs of people and businesses beyond Kurdistan.
Our mission is to ensure that happens. pic.twitter.com/e8AwaFdKLJ
Meanwhile, he said that he believes the society that has been created here is a model of coexistence where “people of different fates can prosper alongside one another.”
“My [administration] and the previous one offered bedrock security guarantees that have encouraged the best and brightest of their families to stay and seek to live here,” Barzani stressed.
He then asserted that the Catholic University of Erbil is the only university of its kind in the region “from Malaysia up to Morocco.”
Barzani later challenged students to avoid being content, and instead, ambitiously pursue solutions to issues both facing the Kurdistan Region and the world: “When engaging in global questions, it is easy to be complacent and feel that these issues do not affect you, but questions like climate change, water and food scarcity, and poverty do not recognize the borders they touch,” the Prime Minister added, while urging students to think about “alternatives” to global challenges.
Later, Barzani discussed potential careers for the graduates, with sectors such as technology, education, research, and business in the Kurdistan Region having demand for talented youth.
The Premier also took the time "to thank faculty and lecturers for putting your [students] education above their own personal needs. At times, I'm sure their own lives and families will have taken a backseat in the pursuit of your advancement.”