— financial report to be released within a week

By Ravin Singh
A HIGH-PROFILE team comprising 13 officials from the University of Guyana (UG) made a “successful” trip to New York as part of a fundraising activity earlier this month.

This is according to Vice-Chancellor of the country’s premier tertiary institution, Professor Ivelaw Griffith, who could not provide financial reports for the trip, but offered that these will be prepared within a week.
The “high-level team” as it was described, travelled to the United States where they participated in a series of activities from September 1-6, 2016.
According to the institution, the visit was in response to an invitation from the Guyana Cultural Association of New York, Inc (GCA) to “fund and friend-raise” at the association’s 2016 Labour Day Weekend events.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Vice-Chancellor Griffith said the visit was a “successful” one.
“Part of the value-added of that meeting is not only how much cash we brought back then. It is what we are setting the stage to bring back, cash, equipment, talent and technical assistance,” he reasoned.
Admitting that the expense for the trip was funded entirely by UG, which has been described as “cash-strapped” over the years, Professor Griffith could not provide a financial report of the expenditure or the amount in donations made.
Rather, he offered that these reports will be presented in about a week.
“We will produce in about a week or so, a full financial statement. Part of why we cannot do it at this stage are two reasons: all the receipts and accounting at the New York end are not done and we have some of the income [that] will be from the selling of newsletters and UG T-shirts,” he said, adding that he wants a “comprehensive report.”
Registrar of UG, Dr Nigel Gravesande, also said the event was a “successful engagement,” noting that there were fruitful discussions with colleges that UG is trying to partner with.
Dr Gravesande pointed out that there is a growing recognition that UG must be a national strategic asset. As such, he noted that this asset has to be recognised in and out of Guyana, which underscored the need for such an engagement beyond the shores of Guyana.
“Our engagements with the diaspora were very instructive,” the registrar said, explaining that the engagements varied in nature.
Some ranged from intervention in law at UG, to strengthening of health sciences, and development and capacity-building for technology and natural sciences.
Dr Gravesande said he was “heartened” at the expression of tangible and intangible support extended by those in the diaspora.
Deputy Vice Chancellor (Designate) for Philanthropy, Alumni and Civic Engagement, Dr Paloma Mohamed, who was also part of the team, expressed similar sentiments. She also noted that the recurring theme on the visit was “reciprocity”, “reparations”, and “reconnect(ion)”.
And according to Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Designate) for Academic Affairs, Dr Michael Scott, the visit to New York was an opportunity for the visiting team to “brain-share” with the diaspora.
Like the vice-chancellor, he too highlighted the importance of academic collaboration, noting that it is essential for any institution looking for vibrancy in the Region and farther afield.