Western Bay of Plenty business and civic leaders have produced a tertiary education plan they say will assist in the creation of more opportunity and reason for young people to stay in the region.

Collaborative committee, SmartGrowth, has released the plan, which its implementation committee chair Bill Wasley says contains three main goals:

• To increase participation in tertiary education.
• To increase research and commercialisation capability in areas where the region has a competitive advantage.
• To ensure that tertiary education and interventions help optimise regional productivity and economic performance.

Bill says these goals are clear and achievable and that the work to date of the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic and University of Waikato are key to future progress.
'From a SmartGrowth perspective of managing growth in the Western Bay of Plenty, we are very pleased to see the two tertiary institutions working so well together to create better futures for our young people,” says Bill.
Improving the tertiary landscape in the region will require these two institutions work together more.
This will involve greater collaboration and resource sharing, linking tertiary education with innovation and economic productivity and increasing opportunities for people to gain world class skills and knowledge.

This plan has the approval of Western Bay of Plenty District Council Mayor Ross Paterson.
'SmartGrowth is about maximising the value of a collaborative approach to deliver tangible results for everyone in the Western Bay,” says Ross.
'The tertiary education plan is fundamental to this as it helps build and retain a pool of talent that can help the sub-region meet the challenges and opportunities associated with ongoing population growth.”

Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby agrees and says, 'World class tertiary education and research capability are fundamental to a prosperous New Zealand.
'As we gather support for this action plan we need regional funders to pool their resources and help ensure this action plan can be achieved.”

Environment BOP Chairman John Cronin says, 'The University of Waikato and the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic are to be commended on taking this initiative, which will undoubtedly benefit the Bay of Plenty region by providing greater tertiary education and employment opportunities.”