By RORY ROSTANT Thursday, April 16 2009

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Prof Ken Julien speaks yesterday at the Hemispheric Private Sector Forum on board the luxury cruise ship Caribbean Princess. ...

UNIVERSITY of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) President Ken Julien yesterday called on the private sector to try and form alliances with the global companies working here to give tertiary education a boost.

Speaking at the Hemispheric Private Sector Forum, a prelude to the Summit of the Americas starting Friday, on the Caribbean Princess Cruise Ship docked at the Port of Port-of-Spain, Julien said the role of the private sector needs more attention in formulating educational programmes.

In order to do this, Julien noted that with many corporations having a big presence in the countries in which they operated, now was the time to encourage collaboration with the private sector and said this was an opportunity that should be exploited.

The theme of the forum was “Promoting Private Sector-Led Prosperity.”

Julien said a deliberate effort was made to get the private sector involved when UTT was being formed and told those attending the forum that the help of the private sector must now be aggressively sought.

In the face of the global crisis, he said what was needed now was for the private sector to realise that it could work out niche university programmes with the global companies operating here.

Julien also said this country can no longer rely on its natural resources - oil and gas — to take the economy forward and added that brain power and innovation must take the lead. It is in this context that the UTT has a key role to play, he said.

He said while the Government took the lead in setting the tone for educational policy and strategy, the time had come for the private sector to play a more active role but this would involve a change in mind set.

Asked by moderator Barbara Anderson, General Editor, Revista Expansion, Mexico (TAC) if UTT’s success could be replicated elsewhere, Julien said he was willing to show how it is possible and the innovations it has brought to education and work.

Javier Trevenio, Vice President, Corporate Communications, Cemex, Mexico, said more training was needed to link its cement plants with its communities. This, he said, needed to be done even as the company sought to increase its competitiveness. Noting that Cemex needed to forge more partnerships with its corporate partners, Trevenio said that global companies must have a positive impact in the countries in which they operate.