“We are building the revolution of the future in public service” – Pres Ali

…launches Upskilling Platform to drive digital transformation

The Government, through the Public Service, Government Efficiency and Implementation, on Monday launched its “Public Service Upskilling Platform”, a landmark initiative aimed at transforming Guyana’s public service into a results-driven, technology-enabled workforce. The launch, held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), marks a major step in the Government’s push to modernise the public sector in collaboration with global learning leader Coursera.

Delivering the feature address at the launch, President Dr Irfaan Ali underscored the initiative as central to Guyana’s long-term digital transformation and human capital development goals. “This is bigger than a training programme or a course or a certificate. This is our future. This is about the direction that we must go in and this is about building out Guyana…stronger, closer, more unified and better than ever before,” President Dr Ali said. “We are building the revolution of the future in public service. We are building the human capital that will ignite the future of Guyana. We are building the best public service and public servants for the future. That is what we are doing.” The platform will provide free access to hundreds of professional and academic courses for public servants nationwide, ranging from foreign languages and Microsoft Excel to Project Management, website development, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Courses are self-paced and include certificates of completion, helping public servants upgrade their skills in alignment with national development priorities. Ali emphasised that the initiative is not just about digital literacy, but about re-engineering the culture and performance of the public service. “The Ministry is transforming the machinery of Government into a performance-driven engine, one that measures success, not by activity, but by results,” he declared. He explained that the Government’s vision for a modern, efficient public sector demands that every public servant continuously learn and adapt to technological change. “We will have to eat, breathe, sleep, walk technology. It is where the world is going. It is the way of life,” he said, urging public servants to embrace digital transformation as a means of national survival and competitiveness. “Adopting this new way of life, it is about survival. If we don’t do it as a nation at the scale that is necessary, we will not survive in this modern, new world. What we are doing today is not launching a programme, what we are talking about today is an agile, results driven accountable public service, backed by skilled human capital and technology.”

Human capital development
The President underlined that human capital development is at the heart of the administration’s strategy for national progress. He further emphasised the importance of creating a new culture of excellence and innovation within the public service “We are building human capacity at a national scale. We have to add value. We have to create a value stream in this country,” he said. “We are building human capacity at a national scale… None of what we want can be achieved without human development. Human capital development is a key aspect of our investment. Building accountability. We have to have a public service where accountability is not an option but the norm. We are building accountability at every level.”
President Ali reminded public servants that embracing change is essential for national survival and progress. “What we are doing today is not launching a programme — we are building the revolution of the future in public service. We are building the best public servants for the future of Guyana,” he said.
Public Service, Government Efficiency, and Implementation Minister, Zulfikar Ally said the new platform is part of the Government’s broader effort to ensure that the public service evolves alongside global trends. “The world around us is changing at a pace that requires country like ours to either adapt or risk being left behind for another few decades. The skills that were valuable yesterday are quickly being replaced by the skills we need for tomorrow,” he said. “We must be nimble, ready to adapt, and capitalise on the technologies before us to serve the people in a dignified and efficient manner. To do this we must be able to learn, un-learn and re-learn. This Government recognises that human capital development is the driving force behind our long-term development.”

Blueprint for national transformation
The partnership with Coursera will connect Guyana’s public servants directly with top global universities and companies, including Google, Yale, IBM, and Stanford. Similar models are already being used by advanced public sectors in Singapore, Finland, Estonia, and the United Kingdom (UK). Representatives from Coursera, including Zac Rule, Vice President (VP) of Coursera, Mateo Samper, Director for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC); and Saif Hassan, Coordinator of the Coursera Guyana Programme, also delivered remarks at the event.
Samper noted that the global economy is rapidly evolving, with nearly 40 per cent of key job skills expected to change within the next five years, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF). He highlighted that AI adoption in Government could increase gross domestic product (GDP) by up to four per cent and reduce fiscal deficits by 22 per cent, reinforcing the economic rationale for the initiative.
Hassan outlined the Government’s ongoing digital transformation projects, including plans for a unified portal for key citizen services such as passports and birth certificates, and the introduction of AI-powered tools to improve responsiveness and service delivery. Rule described the Guyana-Coursera partnership as “a blueprint for national transformation,” noting that tens of thousands of Guyanese have already benefited from Coursera’s training programmes across sectors including health, public affairs, and women’s empowerment. “We are very honoured to be a part of that. We look forward to continuing our multi-year partnership with Guyana,” he stated. Also attending the ceremony were several Ministers of the Government, heads of various agencies and most importantly, the beneficiaries of this transformative initiative.