Dear Editor,
The election of the APNU+AFC coalition government has generated a surge of expectations, particularly among the education community that the long neglect of tertiary education, training and research was over.
The University of Guyana has a key role to play in Guyana’s development, but in order to play its part, retooling and realignment is fundamental. For too long it has experienced neglect and its physical infrastructure, teaching and learning resources, have been allowed to deteriorate. A few examples will suffice: the library is starved of resources; there is an inadequate supply of new and relevant text books; there are inadequate online resources, and for economic reasons students are not allowed to use the available electrical ports to recharge their laptops for the purposes of study. The building which houses the library is without proper roofing and at least one floor is closed owing to the presence of a fungus which negatively impacts health and safety ‒ and the list goes on. The library is merely a microcosm in the cluster of constraints.
I applaud the joint initiative, often times referred to as the UG/ World Bank/Government of Guyana, Science and Technology Project which began under the previous regime. The execution phase of this project is now moving with greater pace and the wide range of benefits which are expected to accrue therefrom will soon become realizable. It is also fair to acknowledge, that the new government has acted without undue delay to constitute a new UG Council. While these are very encouraging signs, more and better are expected.
As a member of the university community, I hold out hope that as the nation moves towards the realization of a knowledge economy, we will see more evidence of the planning framework. For too long the university has been forced to rely on a system of inbreeding in order to meet its faculty needs. While there are benefits associated with inbreeding, a university that is worth its salt must be able to boast of cross-fertilization within its teaching and research faculty. Any failing in this regard will stifle innovation, something we cannot afford at this juncture. This inbreeding is driven by a series of resource constraints which include but are not limited to poor emoluments and a depressing environment when compared to similar tertiary level institutions within the region. Given that, it would have been expected that by now, the government through the Council or administration would have communicated to the workers’ unions currently engaged in prolonged industrial negotiations, the non-salary benefits it intends to provide to supplement the inadequacies experienced by the staff without prejudice to the ongoing negotiations.
Also, government should have signalled, as part of its legislative agenda, its intention to revisit the University of Guyana Act and Statutes. The unions had already petitioned the 11th Parliament on this matter. I expect that the new Council and the university administration are working on a series of deliverables. They should address (among other things) classroom facilities, computer laboratories, staff accommodation, teaching equipment, library resources (particularly for those faculty and students who are not catered for under the World Bank/GOG project), emoluments and other compensatory benefits for all categories of staff, coupled with a methodology which guides the university administration and the unions out of the current slothful negotiations. In a revolution, time is of the essence.
Yours faithfully,
Andrew Hicks