A cross-section of the Vincentian community got an opportunity to examine UNESCO’s Draft Convention on Higher Education. The opportunity was presented on Thursday 31st January by the Accreditation Unit in the Ministry of Education.
Among other things, the draft document recognizes that:
“Education is increasingly seen by governments as a major contributor to national wealth and economic development, there is need for global cooperation to ensure global mobility, there must be shared global understanding of what is fair and reasonable and there is a need for real outcomes for students, academics, higher education institutions, employers”
The one day session pooled together representatives from the National Accreditation Board, the National Qualification Department, the Department of Labour, the Public Sector Reform Unit, Ministry of National Security, Teachers Union, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College, Local UNESCO Secretariat Attorney General’s Chambers as well as attorneys in private practice.
The Draft Convention on Higher Education was first discussed among experts at a UNESCO convened meeting in Paris in December 2018. Perspectives gleaned from the local gathering are expected to be disseminated in a follow up meeting of experts in March 2019.
Senior Education Officer in charge of the Accreditation Unit in the Ministry of Education, Mrs. Descima Hamilton, represented St. Vincent and the Grenadines at the December 2018 meeting in Paris.
