University wants to
open branch here
PHILIPSBURG--University of the Dutch Caribbean (UDC), an institution of higher learning, has expressed interest in opening a branch in St. Maarten.
UDC officials made a presentation to Commissioners Maria Buncamper-Molanus and Sarah Wescot-Williams and other education and economic affairs representatives last week.
UDC offers SBO and MBO degrees in various subjects. The institution has been recognised officially by the Ministry of Education of the Netherlands Antilles and currently operates in Curaçao.
Buncamper-Molanus said the institution’s possible presence in St. Maarten should be seen as complementary addition to the University of St. Martin (USM) and not as its competitor.
She said the recent economic diversity study carried out by the Department of Economic Policy and Research referred to education as one of seven possible areas of diversification. The other areas identified were telecommunication, financial services, marine, agriculture, creative industries, logistics as well as information and communication. In an effort to guide economic development it is essential that we consider the parameters and look at the whole situation, the commissioner was quoted as saying in a press release issued by Government Information Services (GIS).
Head of the Department of Economic Policy and Research Lucy Gibbes said the university would be able to set up shop here if there was added value; job creation opportunities; a possibility for unemployment reduction among the youths and if it helped to bridge the gap in the labour market, the GIS release reported.
She also said that the venture should complement USM and there should be collaboration with the Education and the Labour Department.
