There is widespread dissatisfaction with the service the University has provided students in "UWI-12" countries even though the University provides a 40% concession on recurrent contribution charged for "UWI-12" students enrolled on the three major campuses. The best "UWI-12" students are increasingly recruited to Colleges outside the region resulting in an essential long term loss of our most talented individuals. Another problem we face is that linkages between national Community Colleges and UWI have become strained and unsatisfactory.

To address these complaints, we have taken two aggressive approaches. The first is a plan to hold in each of the UWI-12 countries, "Consultation Meetings" with relevant government officials, the business community, the national community college or university and other civic leaders. These meetings scheduled for the first half of 2006, will begin with an exercise to determine the human resource needs of the country. With that information in hand, our hope is that a coalition of national stakeholders, including UWI, can define the post secondary educational programmes that can best meet national and regional development needs, and ascertain the role of the local Community Colleges, UWI and other Entities in providing that education and training. The first of these conferences was held in St. Lucia in November 2005 and it was well attended by all major stakeholders in government, the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College, business and other interested civic leaders (The Governor-General of St. Lucia, Dame Pearlette Louisy, herself an educator, attended for the full first day of the St. Lucia meeting!). Out of that meeting came a series of recommendations that include areas in which the UWI can better meet the higher educational needs of St. Lucian students. A working party has been formed to review and implement these recommendations.  Meetings in the other "UWI-12" countries (Grenada, Bahamas, St. Vincent, Dominica, Belize, Antigua, British Virgin Islands, Cayman, St. Kitts and Nevis, Anguilla and Montserrat) will take place in the first six (6) months of 2006.