Government’s partnership with Barbados to train 6,000 Guyanese for the hospitality sector is intended to meet needs of the industry by ensuring a skilled workforce is ready as several major hotel projects are in the works, according to Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce Oneidge Walrond, who says the administration’s plan for a local hospitality institute is also still on the cards.
“The conversation with Barbados is about immediate needs. We have six hotels turning sod in another 24 months. They are going to need employees, so it’s seeing that need down the road…,” Walrond told Stabroek News in an interview.
The arrangement with Barbados was announced after bilateral discussions between President Irfaan Ali and Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley on the sidelines of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) that was recently hosted in the island.