A quick response from the Governor’s Office is enabling the Anguilla Community College to meet its objective of preparing the island’s young people for the job market.
“I am happy to announce that the Governor’s Office has secured US$185,400 (EC$500,000), from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, for the setting up of a Vocational [and Technical] Training Centre within the Anguilla Community College,” Governor Alistair Harrison said on Tuesday, February 19. He was at the time addressing a meeting of the College’s Board of Governors.
Mr. Harrison said the funding was granted following a rapid and detailed proposal put to his office, in December 2012, by the College after the Minister for the Overseas Territories, Mark Simmonds, met with Professor Delroy Louden and the Board in October.
The Governor’s statement continued: “My office has worked closely with the Community College to secure this substantial amount of funding. When Minister Simmonds visited Anguilla in October he met the Board and outlined very clearly that the UK Government is committed to Anguilla’s development,and he heard in return how the role of the Anguilla Community College could be central to this.
“When possible we are keen to support projects which aim to improve the lives of those on the island, and today I am delighted to announce one very positive, concrete example of this. It reflects the determination of the United Kingdom to work in partnership with Anguilla. It will build the skills base of young people on the island which, we all agree, is essential among other things in the fight against crime.
“This is one stage of the College’s development vision outlined by Professor Louden and the Anguilla Community College Board. The Caribbean Development Bank confirms that capital funding is still available for the development of the new site. The UK hopes that the remaining technical issues around the Framework for Fiscal Responsibility can be resolved very quickly, which will allow this exciting project for Anguilla to proceed.
“These City and Guilds courses provide real skills supported by a globally known qualification…in areas relevant to Anguilla’s fundamental industries. Opportunities like this offer a positive forward path for the many young people in Anguilla who wish to make positive, honest contributions to society. I am sure the Vocational Centre will be a success – will flourish and contribute to a safe and prosperous Anguilla.”
Professor Louden told the Governor that his announcement of the grant had made Tuesday (February 19) a very important day in the life of the College. He thanked the Governor and his office for being so generous so early in the development of the College, and for the“sheer despatch” with which he handled the grant application submitted on Christmas Eve last year.
Professor Louden said that the grant would allow the College to develop some of the skills gap that had been plaguing Anguilla for a long time. He thought it was a most important development following the passing of the Education Act. He was of the view that the legislation had major implications for the development of Anguilla in the area of technical and vocational skills, and for Anguilla to come in line with the rest of the Eastern Caribbean. “I think it will be delightful for the young men and women who will take some of these programmes because the qualifications will go through City and Guilds,” he stated. “It is a well-established organisation in the United Kingdom – many generations old – and we look forward to providing those skills for the population of Anguilla.”
Minister of Social Development, Edison Baird, thanked the British Government on behalf of the Anguilla Government, and his Ministry in particular, for making available the substantial grant for the furtherance of vocational education in Anguilla. “I would like to thank the Governor in particular, who is a friend of Anguilla, for facilitating the release of this substantial sum of money,” he went on. “As a high school dropout, I know the importance of education probably more than most people – and if I was able to bounce back, I believe that the establishment of a Vocational Centre will go a long way in helping many people.
“It is not everybody who can be a lawyer, or a doctor or a nurse. There are certain skills that every society needs, and I believe these funds will go a long way towards providing those skills that Anguilla desperately needs. If you look at the hotel industry, many of the maintenance people have to be brought in from abroad – and when they are given work permits Anguillians complain. But when you ask the Anguillians why they didn’t apply for the jobs they tell you we don’t have the qualifications. With the establishment of this Vocational Centre, they will be robbed of that excuse. We can simply tell them go to the Anguilla Community College and be retooled.”
Mr. Baird was of the view that, in his judgment, the passage of the Education Act would go down in Anguilla’s history as one of the most important pieces of legislation. “Certain OECS countries were running two to three miles ahead of us, and I believe that with the active participation of the Anguilla Community College that we can reduce that distance come next year…[and]eventually pull abreast and then go beyond them,” he added.
Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Community College, Mrs. Rhona Richardson-Roydon told the Governor that his announcement of the grant had made Tuesday a joyous day for the institution. “We are overjoyed for this contribution that you have facilitated,” she said. “We are anxious to put it to use, but obviously we need more space to manoeuvre. I am heartened because of the support which both your office and the ministry share in expanding the College. I am happy that you put on record that the money from the CDB is available. The grant given to us is the largest so far that the College has received, and I hope that this sets a precedent for other grantors coming along to assist us.”
