The University of Guyana (UG) has reached out to the Caribbean Community (Caricom) for support, as it continues on its quest to improve the capacity of Guyana’s premier tertiary institution.
UG Vice Chancellor, Professor Ivelaw Griffith and Secretary General of Caricom at a recent meeting
Vice Chancellor of UG, Professor Ivelaw Griffith, along with members of the university’s administration recently met with Caricom’s Secretary General, Ambassador Irwin LaRocque and Senior Secretariat staff, where there was an exchange of views on programmes and areas of work that the secretariat and the university are pursuing. At the meeting, Griffith shared his vision for the university and sought advice on how Caricom could facilitate the pursuit of aspects of that vision. In that regard, the two sides were able to identify activities on which the opportunities for collaboration could be explored.
The meeting was seen as the occasion to renew the relationship between the Caricom Secretariat and the University of Guyana.
As testimony to the strength of that relationship going forward, the Secretary General and the Vice Chancellor exchanged gifts.
The vision of the Vice Chancellor is to make the institution a dynamic and nationally relevant world-class university. During his inaugural address last year, Griffith vowed to transform the aesthetic of the University, moving it from the place it is now to a place that would benefit every student and staff member. According to the Professor, the University of Guyana will be moving head-on, tackling the issues that have been holding the institution down for far too long.
Meanwhile, the UG Vice Chancellor has earned a Caricom report card, reflecting his work and commitment to the university since his time in office. According to Caricom, Professor Griffith had given up lucrative offers in North America to return to Guyana to serve as the Vice Chancellor of the local university. He knew that the task would not be easy and upon inspection, was confronted with a system that needed to be fixed with urgency.
Under his leadership, the first Education Resource Ambassadors (ERA) Conference was held in Georgetown. The purpose of that conference was to invite professionals in the fields of academia, media, medicine, business and other related fields, to see the state of the university and to suggest possible solutions.
The ERA Conference turned out to be highly successful. There were over 100 participants, drawn from Guyana and the Diaspora that examined the state of the university, and suggested proposals to help rebuild it.
In July 2016, the Vice Chancellor and his team launched “Turkeyen and Tain Talks”, the aim of which is to ‘discuss national, regional, and international issues and events of importance to Guyana.
These forums have to date discussed Brexit and its impact on Guyana and the Caribbean. Other topics included suicide in Guyana, Agriculture and Food Security in Berbice, and the implication of the 2016 US elections for Guyana and the Western Hemisphere. The January 2017 forum will address public health in Guyana.
