UWI Engage August Town Residents in Finding Solutions to Crime

University of the West Indies (UWI) this morning (May 3) hosted a one-day conference in August Town, to engage residents in finding solutions to the problem of crime and violence facing the community.
Professor of International Business at the UWI, Alvin Wint, who addressed the opening of the conference at the Haven of Hope Open Bible Church, said that the university’s partnership with the August Town is an extremely important one.
“It is a partnership that we want to deepen and broaden, and we want to do that as quickly as possible and that is why I am so pleased that this conference is taking place,” he said.
He added that, “it is critical from the perspective of development that we all join hands together. We are serious about this at the university and we believe that there is much in the future that is very positive, and you also have the support of the university as we seek to move forward.”
Kenneth Wilson, Chairman of the August Town Sports and Development Foundation said that the community was pleased to be hosting the conference.
“I just want to say how pleased I am and how pleased the people of August Town are, in relation to having this conference. This is indeed another step on the road of the greater August Town community transformation programme,” he stated.
According to Mr. Wilson, “we have always felt in August Town that the University of West Indies is actually a part of August Town and over the years, we have developed a sense of hospitality where the university is concerned.”
The conference, held under theme: ‘August Town: Our development, overcoming crime and violence’, was facilitated by the UWI’s Centre for Public Safety and Justice as part of a comprehensive plan by the university to introduce a social intervention programme in the August Town community.
The more than 69 representatives from stakeholder groups in the community, who attended the conference, participated in workshops, which addressed issues such as crime and violence, development and the role of women in the community.
The workshops, Mr. Wilson explained, “are geared at extracting from the community how the community see this project working, and from that we will be able to develop our blueprint that will take us to the ultimate goal of a total transformation of the greater August Town community.”