The University of Guyana is keen to widen its educational offers to include the oil and gas sector, but in this pursuit Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ivelaw Griffith, has warned that there is a role for the university in maintaining Guyana’s food security. “We also recognize that we cannot neglect who we essentially are,” Professor Griffith told students at oil and gas presentation held on the university’s Turkeyen campus on Wednesday last.

He added, “We are an agricultural society and we will not do ourselves and prosperity well to neglect the agriculture sector.” According to Prof. Griffith, a feasibility team to look at establishing a food and nutrition institute at the university has been established. The team met for the first time in January to start the journey of ensuring that in partnership with other entities in Guyana and internationally, the university plays a vital role in food security.

One of the international agencies supporting the initiative is the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) which has provided US$5000 to start the study. Prof. Griffith noted that the university wants to ensure that connectivity with natural science, agriculture, earth and environmental science and social science, will enable partnerships with National Agricultural Research & Extension Institute (NAREI), Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA), Ministry of Education and public health. “We don’t neglect food security, especially since there is an opportunity for Guyana, not only in regard to the Caribbean, but in regard to being part of South America where we have some competitive advantage, but we need to stop viewing it as potential and we need to actualize it,” Prof. Griffith stated.

In relation to preparing the University for the oil and gas sector, Prof. Griffith said that they are ramping up what is being done across all faculties. He suggested changing the name of the faculty of technology while still catering for current programmes such as industrial and mechanical engineering. “Whether you want to do simply petroleum engineering or as we have committed to not neglecting mechanical, electrical and civil, we’ve got to do better physics, we got to do better chemistry, we got to do better math. The investments, we are going to argue, will have to do the whole of the university,” Prof. Griffith pointed out.

He outlined that the university is being proactive in its approach to the oil and gas sector by reaching out to other entities to establish partnerships. Prof. Griffith stated that he sent a member of the law department to an oil and gas seminar last year. In addition, last year, teams were sent to the University of Alberta, Canada and the University of the West Indies, Trinidad campus. “We cannot wait until all is available here for us to do what we need to do. We’ve got to partner. We have to develop and be prepared to offer relevant courses in the oil and gas industry,” Prof. Griffith stated. There are plans to engage experts in the oil and gas industry for a series of talks dubbed, Campus Conversations, which will aim to educate students and faculty members on the emerging sector.

NOTE: The grant from the FAO for the feasibility study is US $50, 000 and not US $5,000

Article adapted from: https://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2018/02/13/dont-neglect-food-security-in-pursuit-of-oil-ug-vice-chancellor/