The Saudi Arabian government has approved a loan of US$80M for the expansion of the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus.

Finance Minister Gaston Browne broke the news on his radio station Saturday.

Browne said the expansion of the campus will position the university to improve the academic skills of not just residents but the entire Caribbean.

“We heard from the government of Saudi Arabia and we have now had the formal approval for the loan. They have bought into the initiative in which we have indicated that we are not only educating our people but we will be providing one of the best tertiary educational structures in the Caribbean to improve the academic skills of our people,” he said

A faculty housing will also be constructed near the campus and a clinic site will be arranged on campus among other amenities.

The campus which started in 2019 with 178 students will by September have an enrolment of 1,700 students with the number increasing to more than 2,000 by September 2024.