MEMBERS of the public have been invited to add their voice to the debate about how Government can increase access to tertiary-level education.

The invitation came from education minister, Andrew Holness, who said that with the search now on for ideas to make the move possible, greater input would be needed from Jamaicans.

He made the call while noting that universities would have to start doing more to see that they meet the needs of the country.

“Universities will have to start making themselves more aligned to the needs of the public,” Holness noted on November 18, speaking at the Jamaica Flour Mills Foundation and Hart Jacobs Scholarship luncheon.

The event was held at the Mona Visitors’ Lodge and conference centre, where 10 students were awarded with scholarships for the 2009/10 academic year.

Megan Lindo, human resource officer for the foundation, said that for the current academic year 2009/10, a total of $2,928,410 will be disbursed to the scholarship holders.

Minister Holness, for his part, said the scholarships — offered in medicine, engineering and several other disciplines — were vital to helping young men and women develop into individuals who would propel the country forward.

He added that increasing access to tertiary education was critical and said that one of the ways to realise this objective is “to strike greater alliance with the private sector”.

Jamaica Flour Mills Foundation scholarships are open to Jamaican students between the ages of 17 and 35 years. Since the programme’s inception, 183 young men and women have completed their courses of study under the programme.

— Kimmo Matthews