GEORGETOWN, Guyana - Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo says former University of Guyana (UG) students, who, have not signed up for a student loan, but owe the university will be eligible for the debt write-off programme announced by the government.
University of Guyana students (File Photo)“Once they owe the University of Guyana, then they are eligible for the write-off, too. They don’t have to have a loan at the bank or [at] the student agency. If you owe them, you’re eligible for the write-off,” Jagdeo told his weekly news conference.
Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance and Public Service, Dr Ashni Singh, announced the initiative, that the government said would benefit more than 13,000 nationals.
Earlier this month, President Irfaan Ali, addressing a special sitting of the National Assembly, said that tuition fees would be abolished at the University of Guyana and all technical institutions.
Jagdeo told reporters that the government has no intention of defunding or underfunding the tertiary institution, noting “there will be a commitment, at a minimum, to supply resources beginning January 1 that is no less than what they have now”.
He said the government would fully provide “all” of the resources and would look at increasing the funding.
But Jagdeo said the university would need to increase efforts to improve the delivery of education.
“We also need a management seized with [a] sense of urgency…the Council at UG has to push for better quality education and better use of the money…we have to get output for it. More efficiency and better-quality tuition for the [students] who go to UG.”
Jagdeo hinted at the possibility of the Ministry of Education having to consider contracting foreign experts to support the work of quality improvement at the institution.
“I’m hoping the Ministry of Education now would play a greater role on quality, bringing in people from abroad,” he said, adding that the government will provide several opportunities to Guyanese to ensure that the country has access to higher education.
He said that these opportunities will also include the provision of online programmes like the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) programme that has already provided scholarships to more than 27,000 students to study at.
