Free UG: Gov’t to meet with university administration this week

Education Minister Priya Manickchand on Monday told the News Room that the government will meet with officials of the University of Guyana (UG) later this week to discuss the upcoming graduation ceremonies and funding for the institution.

This meeting follows an announcement by President Dr. Irfaan Ali that tuition fees at the university will be abolished from January, 2025.

“We are meeting with the university within the next couple of days to determine how we can move forward sensibly and in the interest of all but we are not going to be shaken from the path of delivering free university education which people in this country asked for and we delivered,” Minister Manickchand said.

UG, in a statement, said it supports the tuition-free agenda but noted that tuition fees usually cover a lot of the university’s operating expenses.

For the past four years, UG added that in support of the anticipated free tuition, it has allowed many students to attend and complete their studies without fully paying fees.

“The government has been clear we are going to offer free tuition, I understand why free tuition might cause nervousness in political quarters that are not associated with the government, because that is a very popular programme.

“I think that is unfortunate because anything that develops our young people should be embraced by all,” Manickchand noted.

On October 10, President Dr. Irfaan Ali announced during a special address to the 12th Parliament of Guyana that starting January 2025, tuition fees will be completely abolished at UG.

This initiative is set to benefit about 11,000 current students and will cost about $8 billion.

In addition to the abolition of tuition fees at UG, President Ali on October 16, announced the abolition of tuition fees for all government and technical institutions, including the Carnegie School of Home Economics and the Guyana School of Agriculture.

The tuition fees at these institutions will also be eliminated starting in January 2025.