Latest update April 1st, 2025 5:37 PM
UG seeks to realise a “value for money” operation
– lecturers may work longer hours
In the quest to realise value for money, a move whereby lecturers work more hours, is under consideration by the administration of the University of Guyana. Talks about this possible action have however not found favour with the University unions, this publication understands.
But according to Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi, implementing such a move is not yet possible since it would first have to become a policy. However, he is adamant that the action is inevitable. This is premised on Professor Opadeyi’s view that “you cannot have a full-time lecturer teaching one course in a semester and get 12 months’ salary…it doesn’t look good in the eyes and all of us know that.”
It is for this reason the Vice Chancellor said that efforts have been made to look at “how do you rationalise and get value for money?”
He explained that like other workers across the country who are required to work a certain amount of hours per week, the University will be looking to ensure that lecturers are assigned teaching duties of at least 18 hours per week. “Is that too much?” questioned the Vice Chancellor, who was at the time speaking to media operatives.
UG Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi
He disclosed that the greatest expenditure of the University is in fact salaries and entitlements. According to Professor Opadeyi, salaries account for a monthly expenditure of $120 million, an amount he disclosed is always increasing although the productivity is not. “As the CEO (Chief Executive Officer) I have to be looking at those figures…and some departments are asking for 22 lecturers,” disclosed a troubled Professor Opadeyi.
He explained that the contractual obligations of lecturers stipulate that they should teach at least 360 hours in a single year but according to him, “do you know how we interpret that, we interpret that at most (360 hours); what kind of English is that?” questioned the Nigerian-born Professor.
According to the Vice Chancellor, who took up the reigns of the University earlier this year, he cannot be comfortable with the existing state of affairs and must therefore look for ways in which “we can get value for money.”
And even as considerations are being made to address lecturers’ hours, Professor Opadeyi disclosed that moves are also being made to realise a quality assurance system in the coming year. This, according to him, is expected to see all programmes having a second examiner even as all third and fourth year programmes will have an external examiner. Moreover, the marks that students secured in those two years will be examined by both a second and external examiners.
But even as the University gears for a dispensation of “value for money” Professor Opadeyi noted that efforts will also have to be made to address the poor level of staff salary and compensation. “We cannot run a quality University using salaries that are not conducive to decent living,” said the Vice Chancellor, who disclosed that recently the University was forced to terminate the appointment of a lecturer who was charging fees to give students extra lessons. “The University cannot be run like that and we cannot create an environment where our staff members will be looking for means of increasing their income,” asserted Professor Opadeyi. As such he insisted that salary has to be increased and the compensation system has to be increased…”
Added to this, Professor Opadeyi said that moves are also being made to facilitate the upgrade of the University’s infrastructure.
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