Gov’t Preparing Students for Workforce – Green

Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, says the Government is committed to ensuring that students leaving secondary school are fully prepared to enter the workforce.

He noted that through the Career Advancement Programme (CAP) and other initiatives, students are being equipped with academic and technical qualifications.

“Thirty percent of the jobs you now consider important, they won’t be around in another 10 years so we have to train you so that you can get the jobs that will be around,” he said.

“The employers of that world want to know that students can analyse, that students can think creatively, that …you can be retrained,” he noted further.

Mr. Green was delivering the keynote address at the inaugural Grade Nine Social Enhancement Workshop of the Lewisville High School in St. Elizabeth on June 1.

He noted that CAP has been strengthened to provide additional educational and vocational training opportunities for secondary students age 16 to 18.

“In this budget we have put more money into the CAP programme so that when our students leave grade 11, the ones without qualifications, we can provide for them by putting them into a continuing education programme,” he pointed out.

“For those who have difficulties with some of the basic subjects…we are going to help them. Those who we know are good at skills, we are going to find a way to get them some skills training and skills qualification,” he explained further.

The State Minister said there are also academic, technical and personal development opportunities available through the Apprenticeship Programme and the National Youth Service (NYS).

The workshop also included presentations from representatives of the Child Development Agency (CDA), St. Elizabeth Community Mental Health Department and the Youth Empowerment Agency.

Lewisville High School has over 600 students, with 34 teachers on staff.