Professor Clement Sankat is on a mission to train Guyanese for oil, related industries

– says country breaking new ground in technical training

As Guyana’s oil-fuelled economy surges toward transformation, one of the nation’s most urgent priorities is ensuring that its people are equipped to share in that prosperity. For Professor Clement Sankat, Principal of the Guyana Technical Training College Incorporated (GTTCI), that mission, building the country’s human capital, lies at the heart of sustainable national development.
He shared his vision during a recent podcast episode of ‘Starting Point’.
“Guyana is on a path of developing its young people to fill the gaps and the needs,” Professor Sankat said. “It’s one thing to have oil, it’s another to have trained Guyanese to operate in that industry.”

A Berbician by birth and a regional educator by experience, Professor Sankat returned home at the invitation of President Dr. Irfaan Ali and Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo. He explained that it was a deliberate call to action, a recognition that Guyana needed seasoned leadership to design the nation’s training systems in line with its developmental ambitions.
“They said, ‘Clem, why don’t you return home?’ And they asked me to develop a paper which laid the basis for the creation of this Guyana Technical Training College,” he recalled. “I am extremely grateful to have this opportunity in my life to give something back to the country of my birth.”
Sankat’s return was not just symbolic; it was strategic. With decades of experience as a professor and former principal of the University of the West Indies (UWI) St. Augustine campus, and later as President of the University of Belize, he brings an institutional builder’s vision, the kind of experience necessary to translate oil wealth into educational strength.
“I have gone seven decades now, and I’m still building institutions from scratch,” he reflected. “We are breaking new ground here in technical training.”
At the heart of GTTCI’s work is the conviction that the country’s development cannot depend on resource extraction alone, it must rest on a strong base of skilled and capable citizens.
“We’re not only building technical skills. We are building people skills,” Sankat said. “We have to be careful we do not produce an oversupply of graduates who do not come out with real skills for the world of work.”
The college’s programs, he explained, are designed to international standards, ensuring that graduates can compete both locally and abroad. “The oil and gas programs have already been accredited globally,” he noted. “Our graduates can not only work in Guyana, but they will have a global passport to success.”
Professor Sankat views human capital development as the most critical investment for Guyana’s future, the key link between natural resources and real, shared progress.
“It’s not enough to have oil and gas; we need trained Guyanese to operate, manage, and expand these industries,” he emphasised. “We are training for the world of work, not just for a certificate.”
This approach aligns with the government’s broader development vision — transforming oil revenue into educational opportunity, infrastructure, and institutional growth. For Sankat, GTTCI’s role is central to that transformation, producing the welders, engineers, and technicians who will power Guyana’s new economy.
GTTCI, based in Port Mourant, Berbice, was intentionally placed outside of Georgetown to help stimulate regional growth.
“The government decided that the oil and gas training institute and the Hospitality and Tourism Institute will be based in Port Morant, Berbice, so as to bring development to the ancient county,” Sankat explained. “We are hoping that in this rural Guyana, we will develop a college town… with that comes a lot of prosperity for the people of the community.”

The idea is not just to decentralise education, but to spark community-level economic activity, from housing and services to transport and small business development, all anchored by the growing student and staff population.
Having led tertiary institutions in Trinidad and Tobago, Sankat brings a regional perspective on how education can underpin an energy-based economy.
“Trinidad and Tobago built petroleum engineering, geology, and geophysics programs,” he said. “That is exactly what I would like to see happening in Guyana.”
He noted that while Guyana’s oil industry is new, the lessons from its Caribbean neighbour can guide how the country develops its own human capital.
“I’m doing my part with respect to the technical training — just as Trinidad did decades ago,” he said.
Looking ahead, Professor Sankat sees the need to extend training into related sectors, particularly petrochemicals and food manufacturing. “The next phase of GTTC’s training will go beyond FPSOs; we must prepare technicians for a petrochemical industry,” he said. “Training in chemical processing technologies can support not only refinery operations but also food processing across the board.”
For him, Guyana’s future is not only about oil extraction but about building industries around it, creating jobs, manufacturing capacity, and long-term economic resilience.
“It’s no point waiting… take that decision now, start the training now,” he urged. “Those who are educated at universities ought to become good critical thinkers and problem solvers,” he said. “We need to ensure our educational programs meet the needs of the society… that there’s quality built into what we do.”
As he continues to guide the development of GTTCI, Sankat remains grounded in his life’s purpose, nation-building through education. “We are breaking new ground here,” he reaffirmed, his voice steady with conviction.
“Guyana’s future will be shaped by the skills of its people — and that is the human capital we are here to build.”