News Releases

UWI Vice-Chancellor to open Caribbean economic history congress

For Release Upon Receipt - August 7, 2015

St. Augustine


From the arrival of Europeans with their imperial ambitions to the emergence of independent economies, the Caribbean has had a fascinating and sometimes climactic economic past. That over 500-year history will be the subject of the Third Congress of the Caribbean Economic History Association (Asociación de Historia Económica del Caribe, AHEC).

The congress will be held on November 4 to 8 at the St. Augustine Campus of The University of the West Indies (The UWI). It will include lectures by Vice-Chancellor of The UWI, Professor Sir Hilary McDonald Beckles and Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) Professor Alfonso Múnera Cavadía.

Under the theme “The History of Investment in the Caribbean”, the four-day congress will look at “the evolution of investment in the Caribbean from the 15th century to the present; the movement of capital flows into and out of the greater region and the incorporation of the Caribbean into global economies and markets over the past centuries.”

Over 120 presenters from more than 20 countries and 60 different research institutions are expected to take part in the 3rd AHEC congress. Sir Hilary will give the opening lecture on November 4 and Professor Múnera Cavadía will provide the closing lecture. There will also be nine special lectures from presenters from Cuba, the Dominican Republic, France, Haiti, Jamaica, the UK, the U.S. and Trinidad and Tobago.

AHEC was established at its first congress in Santa Marta, Colombia in November 2011, which included some 150 scholars from 22 countries. Among the association’s goals is “to stimulate and promote education, research, publications and general knowledge of subjects related to the economic history of the greater Caribbean Area.” AHEC’s second congress was held in June 2013 at Santo Domingo City in the Dominican Republic.

The 3rd AHEC Congress will be held from November 4 to 8 at The UWI St. Augustine. For further details email peter.timothy@sta.uwi.edu or call 662-2002 ext. 83773.

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About The UWI

Since its inception in 1948, The University of the West Indies (UWI) has evolved from a fledgling college in Jamaica with 33 students to a full-fledged, regional University with well over 40,000 students. Today, UWI is the largest, most longstanding higher education provider in the Commonwealth Caribbean, with four campuses in Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Open Campus. The UWI has faculty and students from more than 40 countries and collaborative links with 160 universities globally; it offers undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Food & Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities & Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science & Technology and Social Sciences. UWI’s seven priority focal areas are linked closely to the priorities identified by CARICOM and take into account such over-arching areas of concern to the region as environmental issues, health and wellness, gender equity and the critical importance of innovation. Website: www.uwi.edu

 

(Please note that the proper name of the university is The University of the West Indies, inclusive of the “The”, hence The UWI.)

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