…following industrial training
One hundred and forty-eight young persons from Region Five who were given an opportunity to develop their skills through the National Training Project for Youth Empowerment, Board of Industrial Training
(BIT) graduated on Thursday.
The youths were trained for positions such as nursing assistants, medical laboratory technicians, welders, mechanics, auto body repairmen, teaching assistants and clerks.
Some of the graduates told this newspaper that they intend to continue their studies and develop their skills so as to secure proper jobs.
They also thanked President Bharrat Jagdeo and the government for helping them to realize their dreams and “become somebody.”
At the graduation ceremony held at the Belladrum Secondary School, Minister of Labour, Manzoor Nadir who delivered the feature address told the students that he was pleased that so many of them “stayed the course” even though most of them have not completed secondary school.
The minister said too that “your country is not giving up on you… our president is not giving up on the task of nation building and improving the lives of every single person in our country and the task is a daunting one.”
According to Nadir, the president had said that government owes it to all citizens to ensure that they can acquire a skill so as to be empowered for life.
About 25 persons had dropped out of the training and the minister told the youths that they have the opportunity now to influence the lives of some of these persons positively.
He said when President Jagdeo conceived the idea of the programme he set a target to train 5,200 youth between the ages of 15 and 25 over a three-year period with a budget of over $300M.
However, due to the flood that year that severely battered the economy, the budget was significantly reduced to under $30M, setting the programme off to a slow start.
He told them that there was a budget of $75M for the national youth empowerment training and the single-parent training and that each trainee was receiving a stipend of $4,000.
Acknowledging that government cannot “guarantee you a job tomorrow…” the minister urged the youths to “continue to be constant and committed … there would be no shortcut to success.”
Chairman of BIT, Dr. Dale Bisnauth told the youths that “graduation does not mark the end of the training… you have only just begun.”
He urged them to “build on the foundation that has been laid and to sharpen the skills you have acquired and as you aspire to go the distance you would not be satisfied” with only what the training offered.
Among those attending the ceremony were Regional Chairman of Region Five, Harrinarine Baldeo; Regional Executive Officer, Floyd France and Regional Development Officer, Govind Singh. Project Coordinator of BIT, Coreen Connelly presented a project report while Project Manager of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Trevor Clark delivered the charge to the youths
