Skill training, jobs in pipeline for Tucville youths

– ICT hub to be constructed

President Dr Irfaan Ali, during a visit to the community of Tucville on Wednesday, ignited Government’s agenda for youth development in the country, referencing the jobs and training that young people can immediately benefit from.

The Head of State was joined by Foreign Affairs Minister Hugh Todd; Housing Minister Collin Croal; Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Charles Ramson Jr; and Minister within the Public Works Ministry, Deodat Indar.
Attention was also paid to infrastructure, amid ongoing work at the football ground. A $10 million project is currently ongoing to fix key elements, such as the lights, access road and pavilion.
“I’m working with sports personalities across the country to reach into communities, to work on developing positive attitudes in communities. Here, we’re doing numerous works in enhancing the community infrastructure. We will do over the football ground, the fence, the access road, creating a hard tarmac, and lights,” President Ali relayed.
Simultaneously, a small ICT hub would be installed in the community to foster connectivity, especially for those involved in the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) programme.
“I talked with some of the young people. Many of them enrolled in the GOAL programme but they would like to have access to the internet and computer facilities. We will put in a small hub in this area with some computers and internet, so they can go there as a centre to do their online and GOAL programmes.”
According to the Guyanese Leader, there is a high demand for technical personnel, which is not being met. With this in mind, youths in the community were engaged on getting into skills training, and later benefit from such employment opportunities.
“There is enough space in the economy for everyone. One of the major complaints now is that people can’t find workers and can’t find labourers or skilled personnel. We’re taking young people from all these communities across the country, put them in accelerated technical training programmes, and then integrate them into the workforce,” Ali told the media.
He added, “All the contractors are complaining now that they’re short for labour and they’re short for construction workers. So, nobody got an excuse now.”
The President said a lot of national sportspersons are reaching out to develop their communities, especially in areas like Tucville.
“I love what I am seeing in this community, and many other communities. There are a lot of young faces coming up. I like the enthusiasm and the interest. These young footballers, a number of them are coming directly to us and volunteering their service.
Over the next week, various officials will also be assessing the drainage and work networks in the community.
Just a few months ago, Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton called on technical institutions across the country to rethink their roles and functionality to support Government’s effort to create a skilled workforce.
He has shared numbers that, in 2021, one of the country’s most prominent technical institutions only trained eight welders and fabricators expending some $4.1 million, while over $20 million was expended to train 15 heavy-duty equipment operators (HDEO). The Minister had said that the institution’s training output was quite startling for Government, since it hopes to ensure citizens take advantage of the emerging job opportunities.
BIT, in 2021, trained over 3000 people in the areas of small engine repairs, shade house farming, refrigeration and air conditioner repairs, introduction to photovoltaic systems solar installation, maintenance and repairs, electrical installation and computer repairs among others.
The aim was to train 4000 young people for 2022. In this year’s national budget, $420.5 million was earmarked to equip 1000 people with the necessary skills to be employed in the oil and gas industry. This will see the certification of welders, stevedores, heavy-duty vehicle operators, and others.