SURREY (NEWS1130) - Surrey can become Silicon Valley North but it needs more post secondary graduates. To that end,
SFU president Andrew Petter is issuing a challenge to business and community leaders.
He says Surrey can lead in technology and green innovation as SFU invests in new health and engineering studies. But the problem is, the province has frozen funding for new post-secondary spaces.
"A board of trade study found that the South Fraser region has just one post-secondary seat for every ten 18-to-29 year-olds, compared to a provincial average of 2.4 seats. And I guess one of the challenges is there is not as much pressure to provide spaces elsewhere in the province because of the demographics. The growth that's taking place in Surrey, particularly amongst younger people, is not happening elsewhere," he explains.
He's calling on business leaders and city hall to bang on the doors of the provincial and federal government, saying Surrey needs more post-secondary graduates to help pay for Canada's retiring baby boomers.