JAMIA
TRAINING INSTITUTE GRADUATION CEREMONY 2009
Jamia
Training Institute- reviving the ummah's lost glory
While
it is an undeniable fact that Muslims were the forerunners of formal
education in the country, this rich heritage which spanned several
centuries has, sadly, for the most part been relegated to history
books. Thanks to colonialism and the active connivance of Christian
missionaries, impediments were put forward to deny Muslims access
to education.
During this era, only a handful of institutions arose which catered
for the community notable among them was the Mombasa Institute of
Muslim Education (MIOME) which provided technical training skills
to the community. Muslims lost MIOME in the 1960’s when it
was taken over by the government and renamed the Mombasa Polytechnic.
With access to the so-called secular education limited, Muslims
took to setting up religious based institutions while a few efforts
were put forward on those specialising on the so-called secular
disciplines. This, notwithstanding the emphasis which Islam places
on knowledge, religious and secular.
It is against this background that the Jamia Training Institute
(JTI) came into being to help in reviving this lost legacy. One
of the cardinal aims of the institution was to impart technical
skills to youths turning them into productive members of the society.
An Islamic friendly environment was among other additions which
the college provided.
Born from the WAMY Vocational College (WAVCO), JTI came under the
auspices of the Jamia masjid Committee after the World Assembly
of Muslim Youth (WAMY) offered the mantle for Jamia to take over
the institution.
With 49 students inherited from WAVCO, JTI rolled its operations
in June 2005under the stewardship of the principal Sister Fatma
Khamis Ali. It has since emerged to be one of the major success
stories of Jamia Masjid Committee boasting well over 200 students.
Though located in a mosque environment, the college doors are not
only limited to Muslims but have also attracted students from other
faiths who have found its educational standards viable.
Struck by its impressive performance, Mr Irshad Ibrahim, the WAMY
director speaking during the first graduation ceremony on Sunday,
proposed that it was time for a long time vision to be initiated
to transform the college into a university. “This could start
with purchasing land where the proposed university will be established,”
he said adding that would be economical as the price of land in
Nairobi and its environs was skyrocketing.
On Sunday, Jamia Training Institute marked a milestone when it held
its first graduation ceremony. Fifty students graduated after completing
their studies in various disciplines. A further 150 students were
awarded certificates after completing short courses offered at the
institute.
The college is run by a management team of committed professionals
who include the, Dr Noor Ali, the chairman and Prof Muhammad Abdulaziz,
a lecturer at the University of Nairobi and Abdulatif Essajee, also
lecturing at the same university and a directors of Vision Institute
of Professionals (VIP). Others are Mr Abdul Bary Hamid, the Jamia
masjid secretary general, Muhammad Sharrif, a Nairobi businessman
and Sister Fatma Khamis, the principal.
Jamia Training Institute offers training in Information Technology,
cloth making, Islamic and Arabic Studies and Sign Language. It is
the only Muslim institution in the country offering a sign language
programmes to ease communication with the deaf members of community.
The course is carried out with an Islamic perspective. Through JTI,
another first for Jamia masjid was achieved with the Friday sermons
being translated to the deaf at a special section in the masjid.
A unique undertaking is also planned where by those who will complete
the two year tailoring course will be handed over sewing machines
as a road map to economic empowerment.
Jamia Training Institute has received accreditation by local examination
bodies which include the Institute for Management of Information
Systems (IMIS), Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) and the
Computer Society of Kenya (CSK).
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