In his capacity as Chair for the 19th Conference of Commonwealth Education Minister (CCEM), Minister of Education, Science and Technology Jerome Fitzgerald gave the closing remarks at the forum on Friday.

In addition to giving an overview of the events history, Minister Fitzgerald told conference attendees last week of how important his role is in the conference as an education minister who is serious about educating people in the country and across the hemisphere.

The minister said the conference was effective and taught him, along with other leaders and educators, a great deal of things concerning the education sector.

“I am humbled to have served as the chair of the 19th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers,” he said.

“This week we have been immersed in the world of education and have examined the challenges of policy makers, teachers and students. The presentations, discussions, exchange of ideas and collaboration have been an engaging learning experience for us all. I have learned much from my colleagues this week and my life has been deeply enriched by their presentations and the discussions that we have had.”

The minister told those in attendance that although a lot has been accomplished because of the conference, there is still more work to do. He urged educators to stick together and build each other up to aid to an educated world.

“My fellow ministers of education and members of the education fraternity, we have a great deal of work to do,” said Minister Fitzgerald.

“Those of us present at this 19CCEM have many things in common, but it is really our shared commitment to education and the appreciation of its power to transform and elevate the people that unite us. As I stated during one of our plenary sessions, as a group, we are only as strong as our weakest link. Because we know the inherent value of education, we must find ways to strategically and creatively communicate and transfer that value and appreciation to our citizens. As Malcolm X said, ‘by any means necessary.’ ”

The education minister said that it is imperative that educators embark on an aggressive Commonwealth education campaign, that “through quality education, we can change the world.”

“We must put action to words,” he said.

“If we are not able to transfer what we have shared and received into practical application that is culturally relevant, needs based and flexible enough to meet the needs of today’s diverse group of learners, our meeting this week would have been in vain. We must now implement! Our fierce drive to implement must be sustained and measurable, driven by an uncompromised political will.”