By Josiah Williams
The University of Guyana’s governing council has been expanded to include representatives from a wider cross-section of the Guyanese society, following the passing of a motion in the National Assembly.
This motion, spearheaded by Education Minister Priya Manickchand, increases the council’s membership from 26 to 32.
The amendment aims to provide better representation on the council by including new members from diverse fields such as information and communication technology, environment, climate change, national defense, and youth development.
Minister Manickchand emphasized the importance of this expansion, stating, “What we’re looking to do, Mr Speaker, is to name more representative bodies to this body so that the university will benefit from a wider variety of representatives from a wider cross section of the Guyanese public.”
This move is part of a broader effort by the government to make significant investments in the tertiary education sector, ensuring that the voices of young people and other critical sectors are heard in the decision-making process.
“The entire world has agreed that we moved away from the adage that children and young people should be seen and not heard, and we now want to as a world, hear from our young people on decisions being made on their behalf,” Minister Manickchand added.
This expansion of the council is seen as a timely and necessary development to foster inclusivity and diversity in the governance of the University of Guyana.