New Ambassador from China to Guyana, Ambassador Guo Haiyan, along with the First Consul of the Embassy and Director of Trade and Development in the Embassy, paid a courtesy call on the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Guyana and members of her Senior Management Team (SMT), on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.
During the meeting UG was gifted a $7M cheque by the People’s Republic of China to aid in the refurbishing of a generator and the construction of an access road at the institution’s Turkeyen Campus, East Coast Demerara. This gift was negotiated by PACE.
UG’s Vice-Chancellor, XI, Prof. Paloma Mohamed Martin, received the cheque on behalf of the University from Ambassador. Ms. Guo Haiyan – the first female to hold in Guyana the post – during a simple but significant ceremony at the VC’s Office at the Turkeyen Campus.
Prof. Mohamed-Martin expressed sincere thanks to the People’s Republic of China for its timely contribution to Guyana’s only national premier tertiary educational institution – the University of Guyana.
She noted that as the University continues to prepare for an impending return that it will go a far way in enhancing the services being offered to staff and the over 10,000 students. The students are slated to begin returning to face-to-face classes for Semester 2 of the 2021/2022 academic year.
“This is the continuation of very close relations between the University and the Embassy of China in Georgetown […] We have a Confucius Institute on the Campus that trains hundreds of Guyanese every year in Mandarin Language.
“We look forward to growing that and to the continued support of the Embassy for the University,” the Vice-Chancellor stated.
“Additionally, almost two full years of disuse of buildings and the terrible weather we have had, and the age of the buildings is really placing a strain on the infrastructure. So, this will certainly contribute.”
Ambassador Guo Haiyan, said that her country was very pleased to have been given the opportunity to partner with the University of Guyana. It will continue to explore other avenues in which the Embassy and the University could further enhance collaboration so that both students and staff and the country as a whole would benefit great.
The Ambassador noted that since the outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic, many colleges and universities around the world have experienced severe challenges in finance, teaching, and management.
“This situation provides opportunities and convenience for improving campus infrastructure. I am happy that the Embassy can be of some help, within our capacity, to create a sound environment for teachers and students in the post-pandemic era.”
University of Guyana’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Academic Engagement, Prof. Emanuel Cummings expressed thanks on behalf of the entire UG community for the gift offered by the People’s Republic of China. He noted that it is a timely initiative that will boost the institution’s capacity to improve the level of services offered to students.
Prof. Cummings said, “Guyana has a long-standing relationship with China and this specific contribution is in the right direction as it is an investment into education. Any investment in education will be felt by several generations to come […] We are grateful for this contribution as it will go a far way in enhancing our roadways and more so our infrastructure.”
Also present at the ceremony were Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Institutional Advancement) Dr Mellissa Ifill; Deputy Chief of Mission, Mr. Chen Xilai; and Economic and Commercial Affairs Officer, Ms. Wendy QI.
