“The process of due diligence which is always applied in relation to initiatives of this nature would include among other things: background checks and research to determine specifics related to scholarship financing, areas of training and how these relate to government training priorities and current training programmes underway, examination of screening and selection processes, accommodation arrangements for students, insurance coverage, etc. Such arrangements and considerations must be spelt out in a Memorandum of Understanding document between the Government of Saint Lucia and the training institute in question,” the government press release noted in part.
“Government”, the release added, “wishes to make it clear that to date none of these critical aspects have been attended to. With respect to any scholarship training initiatives, government must at all times act in a manner which gives consideration to the best interest of the participants in such programmes. This is a responsibility that government takes very seriously as it is held ultimately liable for any-short comings or mishaps which might occur,” the release from the government stated.
Lebourne noted that government promises a comprehensive statement on the matter soon, at which time the full facts pertaining to the proposed scholarship programme and government’s policy with respect to the provision of support for such ventures will be exposed.

It is hoped that the comprehensive statement promised by the government comes in time to enable the students to enter the institute later this year.
Meanwhile the National Workers Union has written to Prime Minister Stephenson King beseeching him to give immediate assurance to the young students about their future careers.
“We also believe that bureaucratic procedures should not be allowed to get in the way of those young people realizing an opportunity to enhance their possibilities in this new era that is knowledge driven,” Tyrone Maynard, President General of the NWU noted in a statement.
Maynard noted that his union is of the opinion that the education of Saint Lucia’s young people, particularly in the area of science and technology, is of paramount importance given the lack of science and technology based businesses and entrepreneurs on the island.
“We believe that the current scholarships can lay the basis for the development of a critical mass of technology professionals that can spur the development of innovation and technology based businesses, which can add another pillar to the economy,” Maynard noted.
The past few days have seen intense debate, both on radio and television involving Dr. King, members of the public and prospective students about the apparent lack of haste by the government to address this important issue of the education of Saint Lucia’s young people through the RISE scholarship programme.
At stake is the possibility of 75 Saint Lucian students losing out on studying and getting degrees in fields ranging from engineering to computer science to political science to architecture to mathematics to biology, in fact all the sciences and more.
The institute in Illinois is funding 70 percent of the cost of the students’ education. All that is needed is for the government to give a guarantee to assist the students to procure the required 30 percent of the cost.
Arrangements for funding so that students can finance the remaining fees not covered by the IIT have already been discussed with the Bank of Saint Lucia. The Cabinet of Ministers was supposed to have met this past Monday to decide its support for this venture. All that came from government this week was the press release issued by Lebourne.
The whole scholarship process was facilitated locally by RISE (Saint Lucia) INC.
The 75 students were chosen by the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College and a selection committee.

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