The UWI Reaching Across Geographical Borders

UWIM Asst. Curator, Samantha Campbell facilitates tour. Members of the visiting delegation included Hon. Dr. Itah Kandjii-Murangi,Minister of Higher Education Technology and Innovation; Helena Kuzee, Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Namibia to the UN, New York; and Lungenesia Uaseuapuan, Personal Assistant to Min. Kandjii-Murangi.

In order to improve their chances of achieving economic emancipation, Jamaica and the Republic of Namibia have decided to capitalize on their decades-long diplomatic relationship by forging new agreements that will benefit both countries. A special delegation from the Republic of Namibia visited Jamaica last week to celebrate the country’s 60th anniversary of independence and to finalize the signing of agreements on areas including child and youth development, creative industries, tourism, urban development, and diaspora cooperation. The tourism Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), under which both countries will collaborate in areas such as marketing, human capital development, sustainability, and resilience building, is what brought some delegates to The UWI, Mona Campus last Thursday.

Given Jamaica’s tourism sector’s 90% recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism authorities have agreed to support Namibia in rebuilding its tourist sector by facilitating the development of a satellite centre of the Jamaica-based Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre in the coming months. The Centre, which has its headquarters at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona Campus, is intended to assist vulnerable nations worldwide with “destination preparedness, management and recovery from disruptions and/or crises that impact tourism and threaten economies and livelihoods globally.” The group had the chance to visit the campus and learn about the University’s history, including how it began as a modest college and developed into a top-performing, well-respected institution with an international reach.

Hon. Dr. Itah Kandjii-Murangi signs the UWIM visitors book.

Reference

Global Tourism Resilience and Management Center (GTRCMC). “Overview and Background.” Accessed August 8, 2022. https://www.gtrcmc.org/overview-and-background