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By Glen-Wayde Brown
KINGSTON, Jamaica, (JIS) – Noted scientist, Professor Errol Morrison, has called for a strategic shift from “brain drain” to “brain gain” as a catalyst for boosting Jamaica’s productivity and research capacity.
Delivering the keynote address during the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE) Research Day Expo, held on the institution’s Portland campus in March, Professor Morrison argued that Jamaica must urgently expand its pool of graduate-level researchers if it is to achieve meaningful success in research and innovation.
Citing data from the World Bank, he noted that any country serious about Research and Development (R&D) must have at least 2,000 individuals per million of its population actively engaged in the field.
“Jamaica, with roughly three million [people]… we will need… 6,000 individuals involved in R&D… [for any real] likelihood of success,” Professor Morrison explained, a stark gap in the local landscape. “A detailed study of the Jamaican scenario shows we have no more than about 750 graduate-level individuals involved in research and development. So, we are not really on track to achieve major developments,” said Professor Morrison.
The noted scientist further highlighted that the majority of the nation’s highly trained talent resides overseas.
“Eighty percent of our tertiary graduates – those who have gotten master’s and doctoral degrees – live and work abroad,” said Professor Morrison.
Despite this challenge, Professor Morrison pointed to a significant opportunity, noting that some 60,000 individuals in the diaspora have been identified who possess the requisite training and qualifications to enter the R&D sector.
“They are from the Caribbean… and if we were to focus and follow [research done by former vice-chancellor of the University of the West Indies] Sir Arthur [Lewis]… and show them local projects that they could [be] involved in, then we could possibly reverse the brain drain that we have been having and have a brain gain, bringing them back to help us in our research projects,” he said, adding “it is a win-win.”
Professor Morrison also noted that the government has signalled its commitment to advancing the research agenda through the appointment of a scientist and researcher, Dr Andrew Wheatley, as minister without portfolio in the office of the prime minister with responsibility for science, technology and special projects.
“He’s moving to procure funds which the government will use to support research programmes and projects that they see as of national importance. So, funding will certainly be coming in the not-too-distant future for research budgets,” Professor Morrison stated.
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