UG fast-tracked Med push

Mar 31, 2026 News

(Kaieteur News) – The University of Guyana (UG) on Monday announced that its new Regional Pre-Medical Programme is scheduled to commence across all ten administrative regions during the first week of April 2026.

This ambitious expansion follows the successful implementation of two of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology (FET) programmes, which have already begun delivery in three regions to increase local technical capacity in electrical engineering and civil engineering, as well as the new Infrastructure and Construction programmes first being rolled out in Berbice at UG’s Training Campus early next month.

University of Guyana medical students engaged in hands-on learning in one of the laboratories within the new College of Medical Sciences Building at the University’s Turkeyen Campus.

In a press release UG said these initiatives are central to the University’s “One Graduate per Household” aspirational goals embedded in the university’s Blueprint 2040. They align with President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali’s mandate to ensure quality university education is accessible to regional students. As Guyana moves forward with the construction of 14 new hospitals, the University is proactively supporting the rapid, but robust development of a local medical workforce.

In addition to the pre-medical launch, the University is actively working to address the needs of Guyanese medical students returning from Cuba. A dynamic team from the College of Medical Sciences, led by Dean Prof. Ranjini Kurup and Assistant Deans Dr. Andrew Hutson and Dr. Jamain Hatton, is currently spearheading efforts to design a potential pathway that could support the continuation of their medical education locally should it be required.

This process is being handled with high priority but remains conditional upon rigorous academic assessment and inter-ministerial coordination. The University is collaborating closely with the Ministry of Health (Hon Minister Dr. Frank Anthony and Dr. Samaroo), the Ministry of Education (Hon Minister Sonia Parag), and the Ministry of Public Service and Government Efficiency (Hon. Minister Zulfikar Ally) to proactively address this possibility.

Vice-Chancellor Prof. Paloma Mohamed Martin, who has been working closely with the cross-University teams, has assigned Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Academic Engagement, Prof. Emanuel Cummings, to lead the key aspects of the operationalisation of these programmes. As a former Dean of the College of Medical Sciences, Prof. Cummings provides the institutional expertise necessary to ensure the regional rollout and any special programes maintain the College’s MBBS internationally accredited status and University’s high standards of excellence otherwise.

The rollout of these programmes is supported by a significant leap in the University’s physical and technological infrastructure, including:

The New Medical Sciences Building at Turkeyen, supported by the World Bank through the Government of Guyana.
The Yesu Persaud Building for Medical Education gifted by the late Dr. Yesu Persaud Foundation located at the Georgetown Public Hospital providing modern lecture and clinical spaces supported by the Ministry of Health.
Advanced Microbiology and Dental Labs made possible through PACE in the Vice-Chancellor’s Office as gifts from the Greater Guyana Initiative (GGI).

“The University’s goal is to ensure that the expansion of our medical faculty keeps pace with the national health vision,” said Vice Chancellor Prof. Paloma Mohamed Martin. “While the April launch of the Pre-Med programme across all ten regions is a definitive step in accessibility, we are also working diligently to see how we might effectively work in a collegial inter-sectoral way in the event of our medical students have to return from Cuba into a local curriculum that meets both their needs and our national standards,” VC added. The premedical programme begins in a week, and was developed in record time. It will serve around 200 students across the country in its initial phase.

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civil engineering, College of Medical Sciences, electrical engineering, Pre-Medical Programme, University of Guyana

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