President of the Barbados Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCCI), Eddy Abed and Principal of UWI Cave Hill Campus, Professor Eudine Barriteau, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) yesterday, to renew the relationship of the two institutions.
The Barbados Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCCI) and the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill Campus have renewed their relationship for the next five years.
Yesterday, President of BCCI, Eddy Abed and Principal of UWI Cave Hill Campus, Professor Eudine Barriteau signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) during a ceremony held at BCCI’s Secretariat Braemar Court.
Abed revealed that the MOU will be providing research for the business community on areas such as trade and commerce, legal and economic research, innovation and intellectual property; The hosting of seminars and workshops, on a needs basis, related to the MOU; Providing internships within the Chamber for students of the University; Participating in UWI’s Annual Job Fair; and undertaking of one policy forum, each year.
“The MOU represents the continuation of the relationship between our institutions in an effort to improve the services offered to the public. In my view, this MOU will set the basis for improved collaboration between the Chamber and the UWI, in the areas, which will be of benefit to the business community and the stakeholders of the UWI,” he pointed out.
Professor Barriteau welcomed the opportunity to renew the MOU with the private sector. She recalled that historically, Cave Hill Campus’ engagement with the private sector has embraced a number of the pillars of the MOU.
The Principal highlighted that they have conducted research with businesses to optimise their operations; jointly hosted workshop and seminars that have gone beyond mere scanning of the business environment, and which have in fact yielded greater organisational awareness and insights that have fostered business reengineering and remarkable growth strategies; and students have benefited from internships.
“From what I have outlined, you can clearly see that partnerships between the University and the corporate sector are not only organic, dynamic relations, but have borne fruit through the years,” she expressed. “We want to strengthen this partnership and ensure that it is mutually far more beneficial.
The University possesses knowledge and skills that we know can be transformative for the corporate sector. We are placing our considerable and proven expertise to directly benefit the private sector and the wider society.” (TL)