THE best graduating 2012 University of Guyana (UG) is Safrawz Ben Hassan Sharief who gained the President’s Medal. Sharief also gained the Guyana Oil Company Limited Prize for best graduating student in the Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) programme, the Sir Christopher Cox best graduating student award with a Diploma in Technology and the C.A. Liburd & Associates Award for being the best graduating student of the Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) programme.

The Prime Minister’s Award for the best graduating student in the School of Medicine went to Kumarie Kooseram. Dindyal William gained the Prime Minister’s Medal for being the best graduating student with a Degree in Public Management.
The Chancellor’s Medal for the second best graduating Bachelor’s Degree student was gained by Avinaash Antonio Persaud of the Faculty of Natural Sciences.
President Donald Ramotar speaking at the Convocation Ceremony said that even with the realisation that the foundation for the modernisation of the University of Guyana (UG) must be laid, one of the challenges facing government is resourcing the institution.
Noting the 2012 Convocation comes on the eve of the University’s Golden Jubilee, the President recalled that 50 years ago, the university which was the brain child of the late President Dr Cheddi Jagan, was established in a bid to further and encourage the success of students who could not afford to pursue studies abroad. He however, noted that the university has adapted to the challenges and has registered 50 years of academic accomplishments.
President Ramotar gave the assurance that government will exert every effort to strengthen the University. “We will continue to work with the council to provide all needs to this institution. We are prepared to work with all stakeholders to ensure that the University of Guyana is transformed into a world class academic institution,” he said.
However, this will take a lot of resources. “It is necessary that this University develop through quantum leaps because Guyana is at the stage where we will now increasingly be reliant on more highly educated working people.” He explained that Guyana’s emergence into the global marketplace will demand a variety of skilled persons which can only be produced by an institution of high quality. However, producing such an institution is not without challenges one of which is the cost of university education which has risen by 440% around the world.
The most fundamental challenge facing the institution is resources, and Government does not have unlimited resources to do it. He challenged the various sectors of the economy in Guyana to create and fund scholarships and other programmes to contribute to the much needed resources which remain important. He specifically called on the private sector which benefits from the students produced by the institution.
Budget 2012 allocated $900M to the institution along with the student loan programme funding of $450M. The sum of $2B is to be injected into the science and technology programme over the next few years. The resources will target the improvement of the administrative capacity of the institution, fund research grants and curricula reform and modernise the labs and improve general campus conditions. Government has also received from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) US$250,000 to institute a modern regulatory framework consistent with contemporary universities. Consultants will meet with the UG council this month for assessment.
However, there is still need for more resources and he urged that UG itself look towards the creation of more resource bases through private grants and programmes by way of exploration of private financing and scholarships.
President Ramotar pointed to the challenge of amassing new technology for the delivery of education which has to be embraced through the embrace of Information Communication Technology as a tool for reaching students.
He gave government’s commitment to engage the university community in meaningful dialogue but this cannot take place in the face of hostility and grandstanding, he stated.