The following is an excerpt from the speech presented by Dr Peter Phillips at the naming ceremony for the Sir Kenneth Hall Administrative Building at The University of the West Indies, Mona campus, recently.

The idea of The University of the West Indies was born out of the crucible of the struggles of the Caribbean people, highlighted by the labour rebellions and the agitation for democratic rights of the 1940s and 50s.

Out of these struggles the university emerged as an essential institutional underpinning of Caribbean nationhood. It was emblematic of our embrace of modernity and progressive development as a people.

In that sense the key element of the social contract linking the society and the university was the provision of steadily expanding access to undergraduate education to enable the professional development of our people.

It was a relatively simple paradigm fit for purpose in an essentially predictable world. The Caribbean was part of a group of so-called “new states” which were expected to move forward as part of the so-called free world which emerged as a consequence of dismemberment of Europe’s overseas empires. In the context of a US-centred world order, bolstered by US investment flows, social rights would expand and liberal democracy would be consolidated. The university was financed in its entirety by the Government, and student costs were relatively affordable in the context of a rapidly growing economy.

With some relatively minor adjustments, this is the contract as its stands today. Although more space has been given to postgraduate studies and research, it is still largely a teaching university as distinct from a research-centred university. And it is still almost entirely dependent on payments from the Ministry of Finance.

The question that arises is whether the current social contract between the university and the society and the assumptions that underlie it can be sustained in the current period.

Make no doubt about it, the optimism that surrounded the Caribbean’s future in the immediate pre- and post-Independence years has disappeared and has been replaced, if not by pessimism, at least with substantial doubt.

The global order that has existed since 1945 is under the most severe threat. As a result there is an increase in the number and tempo of inter- and intra-State conflicts. Ukraine-Russia, Israel-Gaza, and Venezuela-Guyana are just the latest cases in point.

More disturbingly, what appeared to be an established linkage between economic liberalism and democracy is being ruptured as authoritarian political movements are capturing the heartlands of democracy in the United States and Europe. Add the new existential threats like climate change, which are occurring simultaneous with a general retreat from the agenda of developmentalism, then we can see tremendous threat being faced by countries such as ours. Climate change, if unchecked, for example, will obliterate the tourism-based economies of the Caribbean.

Moreover, decades of high public debt and underinvestment in social infrastructure has left us reeling as a society from high crime and — as Howard Mitchell warned us — without a set of functional values and attitudes or a clear cut sense of national identity.

The time has come for us collectively as a society to re-examine the nature of the social contract between The UWI and the society. This process, of necessity, must be led by the university but requires the deliberate engagement of all stakeholders in the various social sectors.

There are many considerations to take into account by way of background. For example, of what relevance is the fact that there are many more degree-granting institutions in existence in the country today providing professional certification. That was not the case three or even two decades ago.

Furthermore, what is the significance of the fact that an increasing number of our best students are being recruited straight from high school to foreign campuses. This is a relatively recent development, but it does have implications for our sense of national identity and our collective vision of nationhood.

From another vintage point, it has been clear to all who wish to observe that the fiscal circumstances of the State have changed; equally, the financial circumstances of the population. Even with the currently declining debt/GDP [gross domestic product] ratios, there is no real prospect of adequate financing from the Consolidated Fund to meet all the legitimate demands of a first-rate modern university.

While I am aware that some discussions are underway with regard to developing a new funding model, there have thus far been inconclusive.

In turn, the fiscal problems which confront the Jamaican State are at least, in part, a reflection of the contemporary complexities and stringencies of the environment in which it operates. Policymaking considerations are much more difficult today for the political directorate. For the most part, however, there is little policy-focused research available from The UWI. To this I can personally testify, having held four ministerial portfolios over the past 30 years.

I dare say the existential challenges which we face as a society dictate that we review the social contract between the university and the society.

As is evident in the celebration of the contribution of Professor Sir Kenneth Hall and the naming of the administrative building in his honour, effective foundations have been laid and significant achievements secured. However, history is now placing before us a fresh set of challenges to be confronted and overcome. New pioneers are being summoned. Fortunately they can go forward bolstered and inspired by the accomplishments of Ken Hall and the generations who have gone before.

Dr Peter D Phillips is Member of Parliament for St Andrew East Central and former president of the People’s National Party.