A Priority One survey conducted in the Bay of Plenty shows that the region needs to provide more tertiary education if it is to retain its competitive advantage.
'This is quite a critical piece of work,” says Priority One projects manager Greg Simmonds.

Priority One CEO Andrew Coker.

The importance of the study is that it pools and collates the numbers from previous regional studies to present a case which government can base investment decisions upon, says Greg.
'It works with information from Smart Economy, Smart Growth – planning that has been done for the region.”
The need for more investment in tertiary education, particularly in degree programmes, and in research opportunities to support the region's primary sectors of horticulture and wood processing, and niche manufacturing, has been recognised for many years, says Priority One Chief Executive Andrew Coker.
'The findings offer us a road map to building competitive advantages in existing important industry sectors,” says Andrew.
'Importantly, the study will contribute to our ability to retain and attract young talented and creative people, who are the future of our economy here.”
A key aspect of the study's findings is the importance of the clustering of training and research into key industry sectors to develop centres of excellence.
'Not only will these centres attract global talent, they will also position Tauranga as a world leader in these areas of research and therefore encourage companies to move to the region,” says Andrew.
The study recommends marketing of local tertiary offerings to secondary school students; work to smooth the transition from school to tertiary study; and a one-stop-shop website for all local tertiary programmes. There was also a strong focus on increased leadership training within business, and attracting international students.

Click here to learn what current BOP education providers have to say.