(Click on link to watch a video presentation of the proposed Debe campus of UWI)
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said on Monday the South campus of the University of the West Indies in Debe will boost the government’s thrust in education and create new opportunities for people in the vicinity of the 200 acre campus.
She noted that since her Government took office 20 months ago the focus has been on reaching 60 per cent tertiary enrolment. It now stands at 42 per cent.
“We have continued on the path of transformation of our education sector – from nursery to tertiary - recognizing the need for expanding access to meet the growing demand for sound education not only here at home but all over the world,” she said.
Persad-Bissessar was speaking at an event to mark the formal start of construction of the South campus in Debe.
She said over 53,000 students are currently enrolled in both public and private tertiary level institutions, with many of them getting financial assistance from the expanded GATE Programme. There are another 75,000 in vocational and skills training system and the over 200,000 students in primary and secondary schools, she said.
“The steps we build here today and the foundations we lay are just an example of the increasingly crucial role that we see education can play in improving the lives of people everywhere…
“This University Campus will also continue to play a vital role in defining new boundaries. It must seek to offer a vast research base to develop a fresh new workforce, promote goodwill among its alumni and the ability to objectively look at disparate views, and ensure a deep commitment to local communities,” she said.
The Prime Minister stressed that education is the single best tool to grow out of poverty and noted that the campus is just one component of the expanding infrastructure to which her government is committed.
She said the highway from Golconda to Point Fortin is expected to significantly increase opportunities for creating new market spaces in the south-western peninsula.
“With infrastructure such as port facilities, the close proximity to low cost power, and a cluster development with great opportunities for expansion, the possibilities are limitless, this University Campus must respond to the needs of the community,” she said.
“Improving our infrastructure, such as this campus and the highway project are linked and are intended to not only support investment but cohesively stimulate economic growth, build human capacity and continue to develop opportunities for non-energy sector growth.
“It is also our duty to furnish our students with an attractive and diverse range of programmes that meet local demands and international standards. The time has come for us to orchestrate a paradigm shift that will reduce our nation’s dependency at this time of our Independence,” Persad-Bissessar added.
She also spoke about a Technical Cooperation Agreement for Education with the Government of India, which will promote academic activity in Higher Education in the fields of science and technology, information and communication technologies, technical and vocational education and training and “very importantly – research and innovation.”
She said student and faculty exchanges and the development of new programmes will begin as early as September 2012.
Indian public sector officials are soon expected to visit Trinidad & Tobago to work with ministries and institutions in developing and reviewing policies and implementing areas of strategic need.
“Support will also be given to developing links to over 1500 institutional nodes through the Indian National Knowledge Network. Such connectivity will link us to India’s largest educational databases which will strengthen our intellectual base and knowledge capacity, and support the building of our own a local National Knowledge Network.
“I am also advised that some 250 programmes have been made available to the UTT for use freely by the public through the India’s National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NP-TEL).
“Other areas of strategic linkages have been in the areas of renewable energy, petroleum, science, engineering, faculty development, business incubators, laboratory facilities, film and the arts,” Persad-Bissessar said.
She also took note of her critics. “We were chastised when we went to India, to Brazil, when we dedicated this land for the campus, and as it has become the norm of my colleagues in the opposition, they will continue to chastise us in unthinkable ways,” she said.
“Little do they realize the challenges we face today such as in completing projects like our Universities and other Infrastructural works are due to the wanton waste of public funds, from the still unoccupied estates to the extravagant executive offices.
“This Government continues to make do with little - developing infrastructure, building highways, schools and universities, and converting our vision into reality, one project at a time, so that the people of Trinidad and Tobago can have a more prosperous life.
“I say again, this has been our commitment to you and we will continue to deliver on our promise.”
She said in the coming months she plans to unveil the Integrated Campus in Tobago where a number of higher education institutions will co-exist.
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