Seven hundred students received certification in engineering, business, computer science, land surveying, mechanics and hydromet studies when the Government Technical Institute (GTI) held its 68th convocation ceremony on Thursday.
Civil engineering student Feezal Dhanny, 18, was declared valedictorian.
According to a Department of Public Information (DPI) report, Dhanny, currently a student at the University of Guyana, said the key to his performance was remaining focused on his goal, regardless of the challenges.
“It was a lot to handle. There was criticism, hard work and dedication but through it all, I pushed through. My goal is to become an engineer and nothing will stop me from achieving my dream. Everyone needs support and it is also one of the main ingredients to my success,” Dhanny said.
The report noted that fellow Civil Engineering graduate Tamera Allicock opined that hard work and dedication were instrumental in her success. “I travelled daily from Linden and I will now attend the University of Guyana. Success does not come easy; the difficulties will be there, but it too shall pass. Today I received a credit in a field that men mostly pursue and I am proud,” Allicock stated.
Meanwhile, GTI Principal Renita Crandon Duncan, the DPI report said, noted that the institute would continue to deliver advanced technical vocational skills to build Guyana’s labour force. “Development is ongoing and we are happy to say that we received 20 tablets from the Ministry of Public Telecommunications to enhance the vision of an E-Library. GTI is also getting support from the oil and gas sector, in the area of welding and a memorandum of understanding is presently being reviewed to establish this collaboration,” she was quoted as saying.
According to Duncan, there are plans to offer the American Welding Society licence with the construction of a welding facility to be financed by the Basic Needs Trust Fund.
She also announced that GTI has also secured a three-year accreditation from the National Accreditation Council, which will be an incentive for students to pursue further studies.
Also addressing the graduates was GTI Chairman Vincent Alexander, who declared that “oil and gas is not the alpha nor is it the omega. Each graduate must understand that in every area in which you are graduating, there is room and space for your enterprise in Guyana. The benefits of oil and gas, separate and apart from the revenue, has a lot to do with the auxiliary arrangements, rather than the oil and gas itself and you should be cognisant of that.”
This year’s batch of graduates represent a 78 per cent overall pass rate, with the Lands and Surveys Department emerging the most outstanding with a 95 per cent pass rate. Some 1900 students had enrolled for the 2018/2019 academic year.
