The emasculation of the University of Guyana by the Government of Guyana continues, notwithstanding pleas from staff and students for urgent attention and transformation. The University has had an annual deficit between 200 and 250 million dollars over the past 5 years and the commencement of the 2012-2013 academic year was delayed for two weeks in part because of the financial crisis that grips the institution. The delay in commencement was also in part due to poor oversight of the institution by the Minister of Education. Staff and students had petitioned the Minister of Education and the National Assembly for a new Council in April. The life of the previous Council ended on June 30th. However, a new Council was only appointed by the Minister and met for the first time on September 12, 2012. It must be noted that the new Council contains several of the politically partisan, ineffective members of the previous Council. Since academic appointments cannot be made without the input of the University Council, numerous appointments are still to be made and many classes have not yet started. The UG does not currently have a Chancellor or a Vice-Chancellor and the Deputy Vice Chancellor will proceed on end of contract leave shortly. In seeking to control all high level appointments at the University, critical posts remain unfilled for lengthy periods to try to facilitate the appointment of PPP sympathisers. This negatively affects the day to day administration and the overall governance of the University. The Minister of Education visited the Turkeyen campus on Thursday 13th September to discuss painting of a few buildings and repairing a few roofs – all palliative, placebo measures in circumstances that require transformative financial investment. The World Bank loan, which would go into default in one month, has still not been signed notwithstanding assurances by the Minister of Education that it would have been signed by the end of May 2012. It is clear that the government sees no urgent need to sign the World Bank loan and arrest the deterioration of the University of Guyana. The deliberate efforts to stifle the University have undoubtedly had an enormous impact on Guyana’s development. Knowledge has become more important in the global economy and the need for quality higher education to generate, impart and utilise knowledge in the wider economy is critical to a nation’s competitiveness. The Government continually argues that tertiary education cannot be prioritized as the emphasis must remain on the nursery, primary and secondary levels. This argument reflects a mistaken perception that investment in the University will not yield appreciable returns and has led to chronic underfinancing of UG. The University is now almost crippled with demotivated staff whose remuneration is insufficient to attract and retain highly qualified faculty; underdeveloped curricula, decrepit infrastructure and ill-equipped students. In such circumstances, the potential of tertiary education to promote development in Guyana cannot be realized. Contrast the deliberate stifling of the UG with the response of the Barbadian government when apprised of a financial crisis at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill. Following meetings with the Barbadian Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance on the state of the campus’ finances, the Principal and Pro Vice-Chancellor Sir Hilary Beckles reported that both had assured him of the Government’s support. Beckles stated that “[Stuart and Sinckler] have given us assurances and they have made commitments to us that we must enter into this semester with confidence and courage, because arrangements are being put in place to ensure that this campus and university are financially alleviated in the next few weeks and in the next few months. The Guyana Government, unlike the Barbadian authorities still does not recognize that the quality of tertiary education in developing countries must be a top development priority. Developing countries require higher education to: • provide students with specialized skills, since specialists are in increasing demand in all sectors in the global economy; • generate a body of students with a general education that supports innovation and flexibility, so they can adapt to changes in our fast-changing world; • instruct students in current knowledge and teach them how to continually update their knowledge so their skills remain relevant as the economic environment changes; and • enhance the quantity and quality of in-country research, which would facilitate the selection, absorption, and creation of new, relevant, country specific knowledge in an efficient and speedy manner. Guyana needs an urgent national conversation and consensus to determine the way forward for the University of Guyana. The current conditions will only lead to a general collapse. [END]
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