The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Staff Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie yesterday charged that the region must work to reverse the trend of under-representation of Caribbean males in tertiary education.

Mr Christie said the severe imbalance between Bahamian men and women seeking higher education holds major social and economic implications.

He said: “I watch what is happening in education and I see that males are being left behind. It’s critical not just for the Bahamas but for the entire region, we have to be concerned about it as a major sociological factor in our country and it is something that we are trying to comes to grips with in terms of public policy.

Mr Christie added: “It does impact the social cohesiveness of the country and the family and it is serious.”

Mr Christie provided delegates with a snapshot of social and geographical characteristics that challenge sustainable economic growth in the country at the 2013 High Level Caribbean Forum.

The two-day conference seeks to tackle the Caribbean growth challenge with fiscal and debt sustainability objectives.

On the sidelines yesterday, Mr Christie called for greater understanding from international assessment bodies over development challenges as a result of the country’s archipelagic structure.

Mr Christie said: “I have to respond to what I consider to be, in a democracy, the expectations of people that I can in their lifetime provide them with minimal comfort like drinking water that is safe for their children. It is a very costly infrastructure provision that we have to get them to pay for but the fact of the matter is there has to be a greater understanding of the developmental needs of the country by all of these agencies.”

He added: “I’m asking for a greater understanding of the dynamics that make up our country, we don’t have to be fighting on issues that would appear to us in the Bahamas to be a straight forward and honest assessment of our country and the disparities of our country in terms of development.”