–President Ali announces as university receives 2023 Perry Centre for Hemispheric Studies Award for Excellence in Security, Defence Education

THE University of Guyana (UG) is being positioned as “a central hub” for security training and integration of defence leadership, President Dr Irfaan Ali has said.

The Guyanese Head of State made this announcement on Wednesday, during his address at an award ceremony at UG, where the country’s premier tertiary education institution was bestowed with the 2023 Perry Centre for Hemispheric Studies award for Excellence in Security and Defence Education.

During his address, President Ali disclosed that UG will be the host of the National Defence Institute, which will be a “subset” of the United States’ National Defence University.

“We intend within the first half of this year to bring into establishment the National Defence Institute; we are hoping that the home can be right here at the University of Guyana. So, we intend to have the defence national institute that will be a subset of the national defence university here because we find alignment between the academic curriculum and the strategic thinking of the national defence institute,” Dr Ali said.

He added that it is critical in the country’s security landscape to have personnel who can conduct strategic types of analyses to detect threats, especially those that are internal.

The President further said that programmes and collaborations such as these will see the further development of the intellectual minds of those who are responsible for security policies.
The aim is for the National Defence Institute to serve the Caribbean Community as well as other regional partners such Brazil and even Venezuela.

“This partnership is about positioning us as a country as a university and we want to position Guyana and the University of Guyana and the National Defence Institute as the premier regional security institution, where not only persons within CARICOM but we are looking beyond CARICOM; we are looking at Brazil as a major stakeholder and why not even a personnel from Venezuela to be a part of our security infrastructure from an institutional perspective, from a training perspective,” President Ali said.

Additionally, the President highlighted the need for security subjects to be offered at the secondary level of education to educate the region’s youths on the fundamentals of Hemispheric Security. This, he said, will be the groundwork for youths who wish to pursue careers within the security sector.

“That would allow them an early introduction to how complex security matters are and how important it is in the political economy, and how important it is in the structure of society and the building out of society,” Dr Ali said.

THE PERRY AWARD
The university is already seen as a stepping stone for education in this area, and this is evidenced by the Perry Centre Award.
This seminal award acknowledges UG’s significant contributions to developing future leaders equipped to address critical security and defence challenges within Guyana and the Americas.

The Perry Award for Excellence in Security and Defence Education is given to individuals or institutions in recognition of their significant contributions in the field of security and defence education in the Americas. The University of Guyana is the only 2023 Perry Award recipient.

Back in 2022, UG had launched its Master Degree in Strategic Development Studies. The programme was developed as a result of a collaboration between the University of Guyana, Guyana Government Agencies— National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF)—and the United States Government through the William J. Perry Center, among others.

The Perry Center, affiliated with the National Defense University in Washington D.C., is a leading institution dedicated to fostering security cooperation throughout the Western Hemisphere.

The award, named after former US Secretary of Defense, William J Perry, recognises exceptional academic programmes that cultivate expertise and understanding in security and defence issues. The Perry Award serves as a strong validation of these efforts and inspires UG to continue pursuing academic excellence in security and defence education.