Abilities Foundation Graduates Being Trained by Internet Income Jamaica

Fifteen graduates from the Abilities Foundation are benefiting from a two-day training session put on by Internet Income Jamaica to enhance their prospects of securing employment.

The training is valued at approximately US$3,000 and falls under the Social and Economic Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities Project.

In an interview with JIS News, Director, Abilities Foundation, Suzan Hamilton, said she is grateful for the partnership, as it seeks to provide employment opportunities to the beneficiaries.

“We did some research and we found that Internet Income Jamaica has had a history of training persons with disabilities, especially the visually impaired and the physically challenged, to earn income via the Internet, and they have had success, so we have reached out to them,” she said.

She noted that most of the jobs include data entry, virtual assistant jobs, voiceover jobs, transcription, among other things.

“This is groundbreaking, because I hear everybody talking about the fourth industrial age, and so the jobs that we would say are the everyday jobs, those will be replaced after a while. We are happy that we are able to give this training to our students, so that they can be on the cutting edge,” she said.

Trainer, Internet Income Jamaica, Janniel Kerr, told JIS News that the participants will be trained in several categories.

She said this platform will enable them to gain employment over the Internet and work from home.

One of the beneficiaries, Abbi-Ann Thomas, expressed appreciation for the training, adding that it will assist her in gaining employment.

The Social and Economic Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities Project is funded by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the Government of Jamaica.

Under the programme, a labour market study has been completed; training needs assessment for providers and organisations completed; and some 500 persons with disabilities have been enrolled in a skills training programme, with 66 persons employed since participating.

In addition, assistive aids have been provided to 69 children with disabilities on the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), and a curriculum for the Parenting Intervention Programme has been developed.

The Abilities Foundation aims to deliver quality vocational training, and transition students into the workforce while enabling them to be productive citizens of Jamaica.