PM Calls for Understanding Between Private and Public Educational Institutions

Wed, Feb 1st 2017, 08:00 PM

It was during a luncheon for the Founders of the West Grand Bahama Youth Development Association when Prime Minister Perry Christie got the full picture of the work being carried out, not just by the Association, but by the Total Education Centre in Grand Bahama.

“When I spoke earlier this morning in the church service, I had not fully absorbed what the Total Education Centre was doing here in Grand Bahama,” Prime Minister Christie admitted during his address on Sunday afternoon during a luncheon held in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the West Grand Bahama Youth Development Association.

“I was speaking about the contribution of the West GB Youth Development Association and the significant contribution they had made through facilitating and assisting the empowerment of young people.”

However, while listening to the history of the WGB Youth Development Association, Prime Minister Christie said he got a deeper understanding of what both organizations have done for the young people of Grand Bahama.

He then congratulated both the TEC and the WGB Youth Development Association for their accomplishment over the years.

However, he noted that one of the challenges faced by small countries is to ensure that there is not a duplication of efforts and resources to address the same issues.

“The point is, we’re coming to grips with the reality that in an island community like Grand Bahama and the city of Freeport, and the sophistication of the industrial makeup of the island, we have to find a formula to continue with training,” said Prime Minister Christie.

“Recently, I’ve began to make speeches throughout the Caribbean and in The Bahamas about the fact that our countries within the region seem to give a tremendous commitment to the top 50 percent of our students. We work wonderfully to enhance their upward mobility.

“They are the ones who become doctors and lawyers, leaders in industries and engineers. And it seems as if we have not been paying attention to the bottom 50 percent, the bottom 20 percent and as you go lower into that scale, you begin to see the ones who are most vulnerable and susceptible to being attracted into bad behavior.”

The Prime Minister pointed out that there is urgency in The Bahamas for the unemployment issue to be addressed. However, he pointed out that whenever steps are made to address the problem, they are confronted with the problem of students not being properly trained.

Quoting a report from the International Monetary Fund, the Prime Minister said that a significant problem facing the country was a lack of productivity.

“In other words, we’re not producing enough,” he added. “When we spoke with executives at hotel establishments, they indicated their concern in an increasingly competitive world, that our labor outlet must match the kind of competition that exists. That means our people must be committed and our training programs must be tailored to situations to give our children the best possible training. So therefore, you can see in the mix, training, training, training is important.”

That’s when the Prime Minister expressed a serious concern that was brought to his attention while listening to the contributions of the TEC and the WGB Youth Development Association. His concern lay in the fact that the Principal Founder and Principal of Total Education Centre, Fred Delancy, was once a leader at BTVI, a government sponsored program.

“The Total Educational Centre is a private sector initiative that has a relationship with industry here in Grand Bahama. They are, on an increasing basis, attracting more and more students presumably away from BTVI. And for reasons of choice, young people seem to be going to the Total Education Centre.

“This is a challenge, because we have to recognize that private initiative and education is important. We want to recognize that private institutions that are connected to industry should be encouraged. But the government must have as its priority the needs and concerns of its Ministry of Education.”

The Prime Minister encouraged Mr. Fred Delancy and the leaders of the Total Education Centre to set up a meeting with him and the Minister of Education in Nassau to discuss how best to assist the private institution, while ensuring that government-sponsored educational institutions also carry out the role of training Bahamians for jobs within the engineering, mechanical and service industries.

TWENTY FIVE YEARS OF SERVICE – Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie (centre) and Minister for Grand Bahama, the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville (left of PM) congratulated those who have worked with the West Grand Bahama Youth Development Association. Twenty-fifth Anniversary celebrations were held on Sunday, January 29, 2017 with a church service at Mt. Zion Baptist Church and a luncheon at the Eight Mile Rock High School gymnasium. (BIS Photo/Vandyke Hepburn)


By Andrew Coakley

Bahamas Information Services Officer

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