News Releases

2020-25 Convergence: Beginning Phase 2 of Nation Building

For Release Upon Receipt - December 4, 2020

UWI


Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of The University of the West Indies (The UWI), has asserted that the Caribbean region is amid a moment of convergence, in which international crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic downturn are driving a level of intimacy between CARICOM states that holds tremendous potential for the future.    

Vice-Chancellor Beckles made these remarks during a virtual media engagement session called “CARICOM, The UWI, Biden, and the Future of our Voice”, held in November.  

He observed that Caribbean states such as Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica are soon to attain 60 years of independence, and Barbados and Guyana are looking forward to celebrating their 55th. In addition, The UWI will also be celebrating its diamond anniversary in 2023: 75 years since its inception.  

The Caribbean region has thus attained a certain maturity, and is entering Phase 2 of nation-building. This follows the first phase, which centred on our collective bid to convert disenfranchised former colonies into nation states. 

Sir Hilary stated, “The UWI is stimulated by the thought of being a serious partner in the development of what could be a new social contract of nation building.” This commitment is in alignment with the university’s Triple A Strategy, which stands on the pillars of access, alignment, and agility, and is predicated upon the University’s primary purpose, which is to serve in the advancement of the Caribbean community and sustain its development.  

He says that the priorities of Phase 2 will include education; affordable housing; food security; and deeper integration in the form of one Caribbean lifestyle and culture that “cascades into regional citizenship”. He looks forward to the coordination of the regional states’ foreign policies, enabling the region to speak of its interests with one voice.  

The UWI has been taking note of recent developments which threaten the interests of the region; for example, the impediments to Caribbean-European trade, finance, and cultural industries initiatives following Brexit, given that these have traditionally taken place via the portal of Britain.   

“That bridge is now broken,” Vice-Chancellor Beckles explained. “We need to go directly from CARICOM to the EU.” To protect and enhance CARICOM’s interests, The UWI has established a partnership with the European University Institute, located in Florence, Italy.  

Much of the development taking place within the region has also been influenced by the circumstances caused by COVID-19. The regional problems brought on by this pandemic have spurred on greater and more intimate collaboration among the heads of government. Regional strategies to mitigate the fallout from this crisis are guided by the solid recommendations put forward by The UWI’s world-class cadre of scientific and related subject-matter experts.   

Sir Hilary applauds the enhanced sense of Caribbean oneness and anticipates a positive outcome from this greater consciousness that is permeating all levels of regional government. 

 

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Note to the Editor  

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About The UWI 

For over 70 years The University of the West Indies (The UWI) has provided service and leadership to the Caribbean region and wider world. The UWI has evolved from a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948 to an internationally respected, regional university with near 50,000 students and five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda and an Open Campus. As part of its robust globalization agenda, The UWI has established partnering centres with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe including the State University of New York (SUNY)-UWI Center for Leadership and Sustainable Development; the Canada-Caribbean Institute with Brock University; the Strategic Alliance for Hemispheric Development with Universidad de los Andes (UNIANDES); The UWI-China Institute of Information Technology, the University of Lagos (UNILAG)-UWI Institute of African and Diaspora Studies; the Institute for Global African Affairs with the University of Johannesburg (UJ); The UWI-University of Havana Centre for Sustainable Development; The UWI-Coventry Institute for Industry-Academic Partnership with the University of Coventry and the Glasgow-Caribbean Centre for Development Research with the University of Glasgow. 

The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Food & Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities & Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science & Technology, Social Sciences and Sport.  

As the region’s premier research academy, The UWI’s foremost objective is driving the growth and development of the regional economy. The world’s most reputable ranking agency, Times Higher Education, has ranked The UWI among the top 600 universities in the world for 2019 and 2020, and the 40 best universities in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2018 and 2019, then top 20 in 2020. The UWI has been the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists.  For more, visit 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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