August 2009


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Reducing Dependence with Edulink

He stressed that the focus of The UWI is now “capacity building for financial sustainability,” to reduce dependence, and St Augustine Campus Principal, Professor Clement Sankat, went on to identify other areas of focus. Those areas, specifically in the area of business development, would be funding for research and innovation, and “commercialization in all its facets i.e. physical, human, intellectual and even in provisional services.”

“There is a clear desire for it to have a stronger capacity and engagement with staff… and certainly on the commercialization of research and also on philanthropy and gift giving,” said Prof Sankat as he spoke at the launch of one such initiative, Edulink, earlier this year.

The UWI and other Higher Education Institutions in the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States and the European Union Member States that are signatories to the 9th European Development Fund (EDF) are collaborating on the Edulink initiative, which funds cooperative projects between its members.

The UWI is leading this project, ‘Capacity Building for the Financial Sustainability of ACP Higher Education Institutions,’ which includes The University of Technology (Jamaica), The University of Mauritius, The University of Suriname, The University of Guyana, The University of Belize, The University of the South Pacific, and The University of Warwick.

This Edulink-funded project involves strengthening the capacity of the member universities in the area of financial sustainability, through the design and implementation of a professional development programme on resource mobilisation. The project will help partner institutions to strengthen their competitiveness and enable ACP states through their universities to achieve sustainable development objectives and promote higher education as a means of reducing poverty.

The project is intended to provide the tools to academic and administrative staff to help them generate revenue more effectively and create a shift from traditional sources of funding. It will also facilitate capacity building in research administration, use of technology, and the management of intellectual property.

With Edulink, academic and administrative staff of all partner universities will be trained in revenue generation techniques with a focus on philanthropy, grantsmanship, commercialisation of research and business development. The project is also expected to result in the formulation of a professional development programme in resource mobilization and the establishment of a virtual office at which will provide guidance and manage the implementation of this project. The project will last for a period of twentyfour months.