The outgoing Principal of the University of the West Indies Five Island Campus (UWIFIC) has commended Prime Minister Gaston Browne and his government for giving the people of Antigua and Barbuda the gift of an additional tertiary institution.

Professor Densil Williams paid a farewell visit to the Cabinet on Wednesday as he prepares to return to the UWI Mona Campus.

“Getting a campus is not an effortless issue, it is not a costless issue, it is simply one of the most complex things that you can ever do in terms of higher education. Prime Minister Browne put up his hand at that regional meeting and said Antigua and Barbuda will take the campus and the rest is history.

“Despite what has happened I do not think that Antigua and Barbuda and the rest of the OECS will fully understand the impact of your leadership until you are long gone, but that is the legacy of good leadership good leaders build civilization,” Williams said.

He also added that the Prime Minister should be proud of the achievements of one of the 2022 graduates, a security guard who topped her entire class.

“Every time I hear that story it was worth the risk I took in 2020, through the pandemic, to come here. When the young lady said she was a Security Guard she would not have had the opportunity to have that kind of education and she was still able to go to classes and do her work, even if you lose an election this is something that is remarkable”.

Professor Williams said the Five Island Campus is the campus of choice for many students who have expressed an interest to spend at least one semester here.

He said he was also pleased to have worked with the team at the university and the government who supported the continued development of the institution.

Professor Williams will take up the post of Principal of the Mona Campus in Jamaica effective August 1, 2023.

He replaces Pro Vice-Chancellor and Campus Principal, Professor Dale Webber who resumes teaching and research duties as a Marin Biologist after July 31, 2023.