Page 6
University of Technology, Jamaica
• ANNUAL REPORT 2014-2015
The role of education
in the well-being of
society is prominent
in about ever y
segment of our lives.
Take the purchase
of a house. This is a
fundamental part of
social life. Thousands
of poor people want to buy a house but are not able to
do so because of their lack of education.
What does education have to do with acquisition of
a house? Those who are poorly educated also have
another common characteristic. They either have no
job, or are too poorly educated to have a chance to be
employed in a decent job. This makes it impossible
to buy a house. They end up living in shacks, or what
poor people call a “tattoo”, or a “ranch”. Without this
impediment of lack of a reasonable education, one
of the worse deprivations of mankind, shelter would
hardly be a problem.
If this is a problem, what is the solution? Obviously,
it is to provide people with decent education to earn
a reasonable living enabling them to purchase decent
housing.
I make the bold point that if you pursue studies that will
lead to being educated, the reverse is also true. You will
make yourself eligible for owning a house if you have
an appropriate level of education. This then this should
be a fundamental target of social well-being in the life
of everyone.
Can this be accomplished? The national Housing
Trust (NHT) recently publicly bemoaned the fact that
it held billions of dollars in unused resources because
it could not find enough purchasers who had suitable
jobs which enabled housing to be purchased. Hence,
education is the key to one of the greatest blessings
which poor people can receive because it opens doors
to a better life.
Value your education as a supreme opportunity for you
to be able to put a key in the door of a house which you
can own and build a family.
CHANCELLOR’S MESSAGE
“A Good Education Is The Key
To Many Doors”
The Most Hon Edward Seaga, ON, PC