16. (1) A technological university shall have an academic council.

(2) Subject to this section, a governing body shall make regulations of a technological university which shall provide, in relation to the academic council, for—

(a) the number of members,

(b) procedures for selection and appointment of members,

(c) term of office of members,

(d) eligibility for re-appointment of members, and

(e) the number of consecutive periods for which members may hold office.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2) —

(a) the majority of members of the academic council shall be members of the academic staff of the technological university, and

(b) the regulations of a technological university under subsection (2) shall provide for the following persons to be members referred to in paragraph (a) —

(i) at least one member of the academic staff with sufficient experience, in the view of the technological university, of business, enterprise or a profession,

(ii) members of the academic staff with sufficient experience, in the view of the technological university, of collaboration with business, enterprise, the professions and related stakeholders in the region in which the campuses of the technological university are located for a purpose as referred to in section 9(1)(h), and

(iii) such number of students of the technological university as it considers appropriate,

(c) in making regulations under subsection (2) the governing body shall have regard to the objective that at least 40 per cent of members of the academic council shall be women and at least 40 per cent shall be men.

(4) The president shall be—

(a) an ex officio member of the academic council, and

(b) entitled to preside at all meetings of the academic council or a committee of the council at which he or she is present, but if he or she at any time chooses not to so preside, he or she shall nominate a person to preside in his or her place.

(5) An academic council shall hold such and so many meetings as may be necessary for the performance of its functions under this Act and, subject to any regulations of a technological university as relate to the academic council, may regulate its own procedure.

(6) An academic council may establish such and so many committees as it considers necessary to assist it in the performance of its functions under this Act.

(7) Persons who are members of the academic council or other members of the staff of the technological university may be members of a committee established under subsection (6).