Rector’s speech

University and community service

Professor Dr. MAZIN HASAN JASIM AL HASANY

We were very keen, according to a clear vision, to (the industry of Wasit University), and I do not say reform and development, so that it is creative, influential and productive. After the start of the protests near the university and in the sit-in square, and the demonstrators were attacked and prevented from starting the march, and pushed them to burn the university gate, we polarized the demonstrators through dialogue to achieve their legitimate demands by following the (open door) policy until life was restored to the university, and our dear students were able to perform their final exams in peace and security. We have taken the same concern for our dear governorate and worked to calm the situation in the governorate and open all schools and institutions until, with God’s help and grace, life was restored again to the governorate .

I had the absolute belief that the university is the head of the country, the leader of society, and the builder of the future. That is why all our programs revolve around the (university and society) or (community service) orbit. The first step was to return what had been burned, restore the university gate and entrance, and send a message from the university entrance (enter it in peace and security), so that this conquest would be a starting point for implementing our plans to upgrade the university and the province, and for the university to take its active role in serving the Wasti community and dear Iraq .

Universities greatly affect societies in many different aspects, the most important of which are :

research , innovation and entrepreneurship in the technological, medical, social and environmental fields, and achieve scientific progress that can lead to new innovations and technologies that benefit society and the economy .

Developing the local community by providing various job opportunities, and attracting students and researchers from outside the region, which leads to an increase in economic activity and promotion .

influence , contributing to the formation of public opinion and directing thinking and social change .

Raising awareness in the field of sustainable development through research in the field of renewable energy and environmental preservation .

Embracing cultural, artistic, sports and social activities that contribute to enriching the cultural life of society .

Organizing conferences, seminars and various events that bring together individuals and promote interaction and exchange of experiences and knowledge. Its most important achievements are community service through cooperation with government institutions and non-profit organizations, implementation of research projects and advisory services, and contribution to solving social, economic and environmental problems .

We have achieved, praise be to God, great achievements that we are proud of having achieved, and we are continuing to move forward in achieving new, greater achievements. The most important of them :

In the field of international rankings: the university has registered a presence in four international university rankings: UI Green Metric Ranking , Scimago Ranking, Webometrics Ranking of World Universities , and Times Arab Universities Ranking . An integrated program has been prepared to enter this classification and upload the QS university data. The university also ranked tenth in the institutional classification at the level of Iraqi universities, and in the national program classification (Iraqi IRU) for the year 2021, the electrical and mechanical engineering departments ranked first at the level of their counterparts in Iraqi universities, while eight programs in scientific and humanities ranked second and six programs ranked third .

In the field of achieving the goals of sustainable development, the university was able to achieve rank (19) in the classification of Iraqi universities in the field of sustainable development. The university sought to raise this classification to advanced ranks by achieving the following :

Poverty eradication : _

Preparing research and studies to address poverty .

Active contribution in distributing the food basket to the needy people of Wasit Governorate .

Reduction and exemption from tuition fees for needy students to reduce the effects of poverty on education .

–  Holding training courses for university graduates to help them in the future in obtaining job opportunities .

–  Coordinating with the Holy Hussaini Shrine to provide financial support to the poor .

–  Equipping the orphanage of Wasit Governorate with cooling and heating equipment and furnishings .

Covering the streets in the neighborhoods of the needy with space .

Providing job opportunities for approximately 245 external lecturers of both sexes .

In the field of (elimination of hunger and food security), we have achieved the following :

–  Conducting many researches and studies related to the development of plant and animal production .

–  Cultivating 150 dunums of wheat and barley crops, as well as cultivating five greenhouses with vegetable crops, in addition to strawberry cultivation .

Adopting a program to empower women with the nutritional status of children .

Establishing 25 voluntary work by volunteer teams with the contribution of students and faculty from the university on health, food, and the development of agricultural production .

In the field of good health and well-being we have achieved :

Providing free medical services to approximately four hundred and fifty patients annually in the university’s consulting clinics .

Carrying out health awareness campaigns in schools .

–  Cooperating with the Wasit Health Department to provide medical services to the community .

Donating sterilizers and sterilization devices to support the Wasit Health Department .

Establishment of blood donation campaigns to supplement the blood bank and meet the needs of patients, in cooperation with the Wasit Health Department .

Completion of two programs in the fight against drugs, three programs in the fight against smoking, and six programs in the field of awareness of cancer diseases .

In the field of quality education, we have accomplished the following :

Providing educational services in 60 scientific specializations in various scientific and human disciplines at the undergraduate level, and attracting postgraduate students with approximately 263 male and female students annually .

Introducing postgraduate diploma, master’s and doctoral studies for the year 2022 with modern specializations that keep pace with the labor market in eleven programs .

Submitting a proposal for the investment education project to reform the educational reality, which provides material and human resources by creating job opportunities to hire young people, scientific sobriety, and upgrading international classifications .

Modernizing classrooms and providing them with display screens and smart boards, increasing the number of sports halls to keep pace with the development in education, as well as creating an artificial intelligence laboratory and developing advanced scientific units in cybersecurity, the Internet of things, the software unit, electronic systems, and the tissue cutting unit .

Attracting lecturers from local, Arab and international universities to lecture in development courses, seminars and workshops to develop students’ skills and capabilities and cross-fertilize knowledge .

Attracting foreign students to study at Wasit University for the year 2023 through scholarships in various disciplines .

The establishment of international conferences for the year 2021-2022, which numbered 15 international conferences, which contributed to increasing the number of scientific research published in the sober global containers .

Paying attention to scientific journals, which reached eleven in number until 2022 in various scientific disciplines .

Interest in sober scientific research, as the number of research published in the Scopus containers reached 1541, in addition to publishing in international, Arab and local magazines .

Holding scientific debates among students in local, Arab and international universities .

In the field of gender equality, we have achieved :

–  Providing quality education for male and female students. The university has adopted educational programs to achieve gender equality .

–  Providing job opportunities for both sexes by allowing them to give lectures as an external lecturer .

–  Granting leadership positions in the middle leadership of the university to females working in the university and its formations, with about (35) positions .

Creating job opportunities for approximately 215 employees through the Higher Education Fund for employees of investment contracts .

signing of contracts for teaching staff, administrators and service workers for approximately (47) employees, which was the nucleus for their appointment in accordance with Resolutions 337 and 315, and approximately 196 employees were appointed from the 603 ministerial contracts .

With regard to clean water and sanitation, we have done the following :

Presenting scientific studies on water protection from pollution and preparing two integrated studies for Marsh Al-Dalmaj and Marsh Al-Shuwija

Holding 13 seminars on water and preserving it from pollution .

In the field of clean energy, we have done the following :

–  Preparing a clean energy guide to spread the clean energy culture and rationalize energy consumption .

–  The adoption of solar cells in the production of electrical energy .

Holding 18 courses, seminars and awareness workshops on the importance of energy conservation and the use of clean energy .

In the field of decent work and economic growth, we have provided decent job opportunities by developing the capabilities of individuals. In cooperation with the employment agencies, they have set up development courses that contribute to developing the capabilities of individuals to obtain job opportunities and reduce unemployment .

In the field of industry, innovation and infrastructure, we have achieved the following :

Providing internet services in all university offices and presenting an integrated study to the Wasit Health Department on managing a smart hospital, while the university recorded 18 inventions and innovations for the year 2022 .

Adopting solar energy to supply some of the university buildings with electric energy and striving to develop lighting based on solar energy in all university facilities and formations, as 50% of this project has been completed during the past two months .

In the field of empowering women and giving them their legitimate rights, the university has completed 32 scientific symposiums and 25 workshops to introduce women’s rights, eliminate gender discrimination, and reduce inequalities between women and men .

In order to achieve sustainable cities and communities, we have achieved :

Introducing a master’s degree in the College of Engineering as part of a sustainable engineering construction program, in addition to the studies provided by the Department of Civil Engineering and Human Studies in the field of urban sustainability and protection .

Cooperation with the Wasit Governorate to establish a large, giant bridge project linking the city of Al-Hay and Al-Nasiriyah Road, as well as Al-Hay and Saeed bin Jubair. The university also provides through other advisory offices in the university its services to the governorate, including :

studies and environmental studies, and there are joint committees with the governorate to provide services to the governorate .

In the field of reviving the Wasit heritage, the university held an exhibition of Wasit heritage with the aim of introducing the heritage of Wasit and its importance, and an integrated study was prepared to raise the effects of Wasit on the international list with the aim of protecting and preserving the antiquities .

In the field of green spaces in the province, we planted 3,000 perennial trees in the university gardens and 500 perennial trees in the schools of Kut city for the year 2022 .

In the field of scientific and technological development, we developed a technological incubator and held four international exhibitions at the university with an international participation of 239 participants in each exhibition.

Our university was a pioneer in adopting projects and ideas that incubated youth energies from outside the university by providing a positive environment to embrace the creative ideas and pioneering works of university owners and nurturing the incubated ideas until they become a tangible reality, and in attracting young people with initiatives and creative ideas and forming an official umbrella for youth initiatives and within the incubator’s work mechanism in receiving incubation requests periodically. These are the specifications in the market .

In the field of invention and manufacturing, our university has achieved the following :

A project to manufacture a smart seat powered by solar energy to charge mobile devices and computers. It has wonderful and useful technological advantages for students in open areas and gardens .

A project to design and manufacture an agricultural distillation system powered by solar energy

A project to design and manufacture a wheelchair with a lever for the elderly and people with special needs

Hybrid disinfection system 3 x 1.

Manufacturing a physiotherapy belt for knee stiffness with heat .

Preparation of spinel ferrite samples with high absorbance values and attenuation coefficient .

Pneumatic system for air pressure .

A backup system to stop the car and reduce its speed .

Manufacture of mechanical hand sanitizer pedal

In the field of learning and education, we have achieved the following :

Initiating the creation of two universities (Al-Mutanabi University) and (Al-Shaheed Al-Muhandis) University to serve the people of the province to provide educational opportunities for all as well as providing great job opportunities for young people in reducing unemployment and creating 16 scientific departments with different specializations for postgraduate studies as well as working on developing the study of a higher diploma in mathematical engineering disciplines, which is the first in Iraq in cooperation with the University of ( Magdeburg ) Funded by the German DADA , in addition to creating a master’s degree in the Internet of Things within the Erasmus scholarship .

Work on the construction of smart halls and laboratories according to the latest international standards, as the laboratories of the Faculty of Engineering obtained national accreditation and a name through hard work to obtain the laboratories of the Faculty of Medicine on international accreditation .

Paying attention to education by supporting schools for the gifted and adopting their ideas .

Establishing the model kindergarten project .

Suggesting a project to introduce the subject of history to all the governorates of Iraq within two semesters in intermediate and preparatory schools to create cultural awareness, patriotism, and build national unity among young people .

Dissemination of the experiences of Wasit University to all universities, including ( technological incubators, training and qualification of new recruits, implementation of the leadership project launched by the Prime Minister .

Establishment of five research centers, including (the Center for Strategic Studies, the Center for Nanotechnology, the Center for Research, Development and Advanced Manufacturing )

Establishing youth and scout camps for the people of Iraq from north to south .

Implementing multiple programs to develop leadership and personal characteristics and create awareness among young people in cooperation with the holy shrines .

Implementation of sustainable human development programs with the scientific seminaries in Najaf on ethics and beliefs

interest in people with special needs in cooperation with the Al-Noor Institute for the Blind and the Al- Amal Institute .

Presentation of a study to Wasit Governorate to establish an autism center

In the field of digital transformation and governance, the university has been transformed into a smart university by starting with the first step, which was represented by smart gates and the validity of the issuance of documents. Initiating the implementation of the electronic payment points ( POS ) project.

In the field of local and global scientific cooperation; Regarding the local, we achieved the following :

A cooperation program with Al-Kut University College

cooperation with Sumer University

cooperation with the Central Technical University

Scientific and academic cooperation with Al-Mustansiriya University

Scientific cooperation with Al-Hamdaniya University

Scientific and cultural cooperation with the University College of Knowledge

A cooperation mechanism with the University of Karbala

A cooperation mechanism with Al-Farahidi University

A cooperation program with the University of Fallujah

A twinning agreement with the University of Mosul

A cooperation mechanism with the Heritage University College

Cooperation with Al-Qasim Green University

A memorandum of understanding with Imam Jaafar Al-Sadiq University, peace be upon him

A cooperation mechanism with the University of Sulaymaniyah

A cooperation mechanism with the National University of Science and Technology

A cooperation program with Hilla University College

A cooperation program with Nissan University

A cooperation program with the University of Basra

A cooperation program with the University of Anbar

A cooperation program with Al-Karkh University of Science

A cooperation mechanism with Jaber Ibn Hayyan Medical University

A cooperation mechanism with the University of Kufa

Scientific cooperation with Al-Furat Al-Awsat University

A cooperation program with the University of Technology

Cooperation with the National University of the Future

A cooperation program with the Iraqi intelligence service

A cooperation program with the National Security Agency

A cooperation program with the Ministry of Defense

With regard to international scientific cooperation, we have achieved the following :

Cooperation with the Iranian University of Ilam

Cooperation with the Iranian Al-Razi University

Cooperation with the Iranian University of Tabriz

Cooperation with Tulane University, USA

Cooperation with Nottingham Trent University, UK

Project Inspire / Erasmus / European Union

And in implementation of the request of our future ministry, we applied the action plan to implement a training program for those who are confirmed for permanent staffing of contract employees, lecturers, and holders of higher degrees. It is an integrated program for the rehabilitation of the target group. The university has worked through the Center for Continuing Education, a course that included a section of them, and the courses continue until the completion of the entire target group .

The Division of Rehabilitation, Employment and Follow-up of Graduates held courses for qualifying graduate students. These courses included all colleges according to their majors. For example, at the request of our future ministry to hold awareness sessions on sustainable development, the Division has held courses for students of the Faculty of Agriculture. Our future ministry requested the establishment of a course on agricultural technologies and services, so the Division set up courses for students of the Faculty of Agriculture on this subject .

In the year 2022, the Division held 19 courses, in which the number of beneficiaries was 425 graduates. In the current year 2023, it has held 19 sessions, and it is continuing to hold its courses. The university also coordinated with the Al-Waha Company in Al-Ahdab field to engage engineering students in courses on oil engineering, and sent twenty students from the electrical and mechanical departments .

We have been keen on the issue of the media, so we have given the department of media and public relations special and great importance, because it documents everything we do, and because the world is now spinning on the media wheel. The department has carried out its tasks in the best way, under direct supervision and guidance from us. We have worked to restore Al-Wasiti newspaper after it stopped publishing years ago .

And we had a strong incitement to keep pace with the scientific development in the world, so we set up artificial intelligence projects and their applications. and artificial intelligence as behavior and certain characteristics that characterize it Software , make it simulate Human mental abilities and modes of functioning. One of the most important of these characteristics is the ability to learning conclusion and reaction on modes did program in the machine . Related to this is 5G , the fifth generation of cellular wireless technology. It delivers faster upload and download speeds, more consistent connections, and has the potential to transform the way we use the Internet to access apps, social networking, and information. We have started laying the foundations for the Faculty of Artificial Intelligence, preparing programs for all control systems for factories, laboratories, and production lines, and managing them according to artificial intelligence, as well as other activities in this field .

Among our programs implemented in community service are also :

Presenting a study for the development of Wasit Governorate, which included (30 ) projects for the development of the governorate .

For the sake of the reconstruction of Iraq, several projects have been completed, the most prominent of which are the design of the shrine of the two military imams (PBUH), the direct supervision of implementation, the design of the shrine of the great companion Saeed bin Jubair (may God be pleased with him), the shrine of Tajuddin (may God be pleased with him), the design of bridges for Wasit Governorate (the city of Al-Hay) and the design of the national card building in the city of Kut .

Initiating an investment project (1500) dunums in agriculture and livestock projects and their products, according to artificial intelligence .

Distribution of fifty homes for teachers and employees .

Initiating the implementation of fifty other homes for teachers and the project is in the stages of delivery .

Raising the level of international practical publishing by adopting moral and material stimulation and announcing the research teams award program that was approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education .

Implementing Resolution 347 and completing the buildings of the internal departments without state funding .

Proposing the application of Resolution 340 to the Ministry of Higher Education, through which many buildings and large projects were completed in Iraqi universities, including five buildings in Wasit University .

Seeking to make the twentieth of Safar an international day of volunteering, after it was an Iraqi day, in cooperation with Cardinal and Professor Seulj Serumi, with the help of Pope Francis .

The aspiration required of us, our distant view of things, the goals generated in our mind, and the sincere intention not to be a number in the list of presidents of Wasit University, was the reason that made us achieve a lot and feel short, and makes us not look with admiration for what we have presented because we know very well that what is required is greater and more. Imam Ali, peace be upon him, said (admiration prevents increase). I have relied on my long administrative experience, my scientific and social relations, and the efforts of sincere university leaders, faculty and staff to put in place a huge program that is greater than the development and progress of the university. Rather, as I mentioned first (the university industry), to be an example to follow and to be innovative and developing for good, and to be unique in the scientific and human production represented by the outputs. The aforementioned is the tip of a planned iceberg .