The Compass, Nov. 2004 Page 3
Week
The
Roundtable
0
Starting clockwise from top left:
-Charles Stith, fromer ambassador to Tanzania, stands with
Donald Morring, president of the SGA.
-Dr. Winston Murry, a community college president from
Tobago, and Dr. Bonita T. Ewers, associate vice chancellor for academic
affairs - academic support, seen with His Excellency Karl
Auguste Offman, former president of the Republic of Mauritius.
-Dr. Venus Deonanan stands with President Offman
-Dr. Winston Murray, president of Scarboragh Community College,
Tobago, addresses the group
-Center - President Offman stands with ECSU student Lucretia White
New goals will make Africa
the continent of the future
By Chris Chinaka
Staff Writer
During African Introspection
week, I had the privilege on
September 27 to meet His
Excellency Karl Auguste
Offmann, former president of an
East African Country, the
Republic of Mauritius. Dr.
Winston Murray, who is the
president and founder of
Tabago’s first institution of
higher education, Scarboragh
community college, was also
present at the roundtable. Dr.
Murray spoke of the nature of
improving the quality of
Education in Tabago. Tobagoan
students are usually overlooked
with funds and scholarships
while most European students
that don’t need the money are
likely to receive them, Murray
said.
I was impressed to see
some of the professors and other
ECSU faculty members present
at this event. President Karl
Offman is currentjy the Lloyd G.
Balfour president in residence at
the African Presidential Archives
and Research Center at Boston
University. It was an honor and
a motivational experience to hear
and understand some valuable
facts and statistics about the
continent of Africa that I never
knew. As an African student, this
event helped me to refocus and
bring closure toward my mission
statement. It was inspiring to sit
at the roundtable with the
president and visualize the
direction our nations need to be
heading.
The main objective for the
Global Leadership Academy is to
collect and generate ideas for the
improvement of the African
economy. “New partnerships for
Africa’s Economic Development
have outlined strategies for the
next few years”. President
Offman said in response to a
question. “Production levels are
low, while African resources are
high.”
In President Offman’s
presentation, he made everyone
very aware of the living
conditions and situation most
African youths are face. Africa
is the only continent to have
grown poorer in the past 25 years
and that needs to change. For
example, Africa produces 70
percent of the world’s cotton, but
only two percent of the cotton
produced in Africa stays home.
“Oil should not be the only focus
of production as there are many
other profitable revenues,”
President Offman said.
For a while, I felt like a
lost sheep in America, but I
realized that the key is to stay
balanced, and focused. When I
succeed, I can reinvest in my
country. It has been about three
year since I’ve been to Nigeria,
but conventions like the African
Introspection will help keep me
determined until I go home.
With some of our
new goals, we can make Africa
the continent of the future.