THE HAGUE - The so-called 'ministerial places' for Caribbean students may be reintroduced. This was announced by the Dutch State Secretary Maarten van Ooijen of Health, Welfare and Sport (CU). 

The ministerial positions are a priority arrangement for Caribbean students for certain courses for which a lottery is normally held. The scheme was abolished in 2016 to give all students equal opportunities. However, there is now such a great shortage of medical specialists on the islands that the reintroduction is being considered for, for example, medicine training. 

The chances of admission for Caribbean students are generally smaller than for European Dutch citizens, according to research by Erasmus University.