GLOBAL education provider in the field of medicine, Texila American University yesterday turned the sod for the construction of a US$20 million state-of the-art campus at Providence, East Bank Demerara, which when completed will be among the elite medical schools in the Caribbean.Located at Block 2442 Plantation Providence, the medical university is expected to be completed in a year from the time construction begins. It forms part of a wider plan to transform the East Bank corridor into a modern industrial and commercial hub.

The green campus slated for completion in 2016, will be outfitted with a modern laboratory, library, research centre, Information Technology centre, student lounges and an international cafeteria. All told, it will have the capacity to accommodate some 1,500 students.
The Texila American University is part of a global conglomerate, Texila American University Limited Hong Kong (TAU-HK), which also owns Texila Education Management Services (TEMS), USA; Texila Global Consulting Services, United Arab Emirates; and SAKSHI Education and Consulting and Training Limited in India.
The university began operation here in 2010 with seven students, operating out of the Critchlow Labour College, Woodford Avenue, Georgetown, before moving to establish a campus at Goedverwagting, East Coast Demerara, due to a growing student population.
Today, the university boasts of some 420 students from 35 countries and about 100 international and Guyanese faculty support staff. The school offers clinical rotations in the US and the Philippines. Students studying locally also do clinical rotation at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). The majority of the university’s student population is drawn from the US, Asia and Africa.
Addressing the groundbreaking ceremony at the construction site, Providence, which had in attendance President Donald Ramotar, Housing Minister Irfaan Ali, members of the diplomatic corps and students, the university’s founder Saju Bhaskar said Texila is a place where promise, possibility and potential immerse with local talents in the study and acquisition of knowledge.
In the relationship, he said, the school provides an environment where sanity thrives, a balance in a world that can at times tilt out of balance.
Catalytic reactor
“Texila is the catalytic reactor, attracting people from all over the world who might not have otherwise met at this location; building bonds among students and faculty; transforming the mind and spirit, but also educational experience inside and outside of the classroom,” Bhaskar said, adding that the university brings students and faculty members into a dynamic learning community, broadening their horizons, sharpening their creativity, and moulding them to be leaders in their respective areas of medicine.
150-BED HOSPITAL
Aside from the US multimillion dollar campus, Texila intends to build a 150-bed hospital at the very location to serve the people of Providence and the nation at large. This is in addition to the construction of housing facilities to accommodate international students and faculty staff.

Bhaskar thanked former President Bharrat Jagdeo, under whose tenure the university received the blessings to build the Providence campus, and former Education Minister Shaik Baksh who approved of the university operating here.
He also thanked Housing Minister Irfaan Ali for selecting the location for the campus and current Education Minister Priya Manickchand for her passion and dedication in raising the standard of education in Guyana.
FRIENDLY INVESTMENT CLIMATE
In addition, the Texila American University founder expressed gratitude to President Donald Ramotar and the leaders in Government for providing a climate that is friendly to investors, declaring to the gathering, “I and we believe in Guyana”.
President Donald Ramotar praised the investment, saying that it will expand the market for education tourism, but more importantly, it reflects investors’ confidence in the economy.
“The Government believes that the most important factor for our development is the quality of people that we have and in that regard education plays a very important role,” the President said, pointing out that Texila will not only be bringing students from abroad, but will also attract local students.
“This is very important for us because it will help us to lift our standards and make more possibilities more accessible, possibilities of education to our young people, and to our people at large,” he said, noting that the Government, once elected will also bring the Specialty Hospital on stream.
The Specialty Hospital, he said, will enable Guyana to become a medical tourism destination.

GROWING GLOBAL MARKET
Patients Beyond Borders estimates the global medical tourism market to worth between US$ 38.5 to US$55 billion. Some 11 million cross-border patients worldwide spend an average of US$ 3,500 to US$ 5,000 per visit, including all medically-related costs, cross-border and local transport, inpatient stay and accommodations.
According to Patient Beyond Borders, the world population is aging and becoming more affluent at rates that surpass the availability of quality healthcare resources.
In addition, out-of-pocket medical costs of critical and elective procedures continue to rise, while nations offering universal care are faced with ever-increasing resource burdens. These drivers are forcing patients to pursue cross-border healthcare options either to save money or to avoid long waits for treatment.
The organisation estimates the worldwide medical tourism market is growing at a rate of 15 to 25 per cent, with rates highest in North, Southeast and South Asia.
GUYANA CAN CAPITALISE
President Ramotar said Guyana can capitalise on this growing market as India, Singapore, Costa Rica and other countries around the world have done.
The Specialty Hospital, he said, will allow Guyana to deliver a world-class service to its people, and provide a service to the world, while building a reputation a reputable medical tourism destination.
During the past 23 years, through strategic investment, Guyana has been able to make significant strides in the health sector, notably, raising the life expectancy from 58 years in 1990 to 70 years today.
On this score, the president said the medical campus at Providence will strongly support Government’s investments to build a strong, educated and healthy nation.

“This campus that we are building today will play an important role in helping us to train our own Guyanese to better man our health sector so we can be known right across the world as a country that is very strong in producing quality students and students that will take our names abroad when they go back to their respective countries or where else they might venture in life, that they will remember Guyana and in so doing become an ambassador [for Guyana] wherever they are, or wherever go.”