The Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc. (GuySuCo) has announced the induction of 41 apprentices to its Training Centre at Port Mourant.
In a statement issued on Monday, GuySuCo said the apprentices were recruited recently after the successful completion of a series of thorough assessments and interviews at the end of a process that saw 214 applications being received.
The corporation explain-ed that this year’s cohort of apprentices is sponsored by the four operating sugar estates, which is expected to employ them upon the successful completion of their apprenticeships.
The statement noted that among the recruits inducted are 11, between the ages of 16 and 18 years, primarily from areas surrounding the Rose Hall Estate. They were afforded the opportunity to prepare themselves for technical opportunities in the operation of the Rose Hall Estate’s Factory, which is expected to become operational in October next year. The other recruits are sponsored by Uitvlugt Estate (8), the Blairmont Estate (10) and the Albion/ Port Mourant Estate (12).
Jainarine Sookpaul, Manager of the Training Centre, congratulated the new apprentices and urged that they continue to uphold the high standards of the institution. “You are fortunate as you are the chosen ones. This institution stands on the pillars of: tradition, honour and discipline. Over the years, the Training Centre has earned a reputation of delivering individuals of high discipline,” he was quoted as saying at the induction ceremony
Acknowledging the fact the that this batch of apprentices is commencing their training during the COVID-19 pandemic, Sookpaul assured that all measures have been taken to ensure the health and safety of each individual. “We have been conducting face to face training since February 2021 and have not registered any COVID 19 positive case here at the Centre. We intend to continue to follow the established protocols and all persons joining the Training Centre must be fully vaccinated. We will provide support to ensure all our apprentices and staff are fully vaccinated,” he said.
GuySuCo’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ravindra Swammy, who also spoke at the ceremony, also made an appeal for persons to observe all COVID-19 protocols and to become fully vaccinated.
Meanwhile, GuySuCo’s acting Compensation and Business Development Manager Shurwyn Stewart congratulated the recruits and their families for their efforts to forge ahead with their development despite the COVID-19 pandemic, while noting that the successful completion of the apprenticeship would require a collective effort. “…[T]he success of each recruit is a collective responsibility of everyone inclusive [of] parents and importantly the recruits themselves, who must maintain a high level of discipline and commitment,” he said.
In an invited comment, the lone female apprentice, Sally Shamsher, a 17-year-old from Kingsley Village, West Coast Berbice, who is sponsored by Blairmont Estate, expressed gratitude for the opportunity to join Training Centre while adding that she is looking forward to realising her dreams of becoming a mechanical engineer.
In giving a background of the apprenticeship programme, GuySuCo noted that in 1957, Bookers Sugar Estates established an Apprentice Training Facility, called the Port Mourant Apprentice Training Centre (PMTC), to provide young Guyanese with greater opportunities to equip themselves with technical skills. “GuySuCo’s Apprenticeship Scheme is recognized as the best in Guyana with the majority of graduates progressing into skilled and supervisory positions in GuySuCo after a period of consolidation in their jobs on completion of their apprenticeship,” the corporation noted. It added that technical disciplines include Industrial Electrical Installation, Engineering Fitting and Machining, Factory Process Instru-mentation, Heavy and Light Automotive Engi-neering, Automotive Electrical Engineering, and Factory Process Sugar Boiling.
Since 1957, GuySuCo said, 3,399 young persons have been trained at PMTC, which has been supplying employees with core technical skills for the fields and factories.
