Tertiary education expert says: UWI must reach out to Haiti, Cuba

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – Visiting Moroccan tertiary education expert Dr Jamil Salmi says UWI should reach out to its French and Spanish speaking neighbours like Haiti, Dominican Republic and Cuba to truly establish the academic institution’s reputation as a regional and international giant. Salmi made this comment during a Distinguished Open lecture at Daaga Auditorium, St Augustine campus last week Wednesday. Its theme was The Challenge of Establishing World-Class Universities.
Salmi, who lives in Bogota, Colombia, had first-hand knowledge about the crushing poverty experienced by Haitians since he worked on the education sector during his stint as a World Bank official in the late 1990s. He also visited Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake which destroyed Port-au-Prince on January 12, 2010. The epic tragedy claimed about 300,000 lives and rendered millions homeless, forcing them to seek refuge in tent cities.