Georgetown: Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo anticipates that 1,000 Guyanese will be upskilled annually for the country’s oil and gas industry with the government’s National Training Institute.
The Vice President shared this news during a press conference at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre (ACCC) on Monday.
“Early next year we will start building out a national training institute that will hopefully train over 1,000 persons per year. We’re looking to train now maybe 600 to 700 welders in a short-term certification programme. This is not just putting in place the framework, but also putting in place the mechanism to ensure that the companies comply with the obligations. It is also about training people to ensure that they can access opportunities,” Dr. Jagdeo articulated to the media.
Notably, earlier this year the government commissioned a new oil and gas training centre, which is expected to create new opportunities for locals. The centre, located in Middle Street, Georgetown, is an initiative of the Guyana Oil and Gas Energy Chamber (GOGEC); a private sector umbrella organisation formed in 2017 to advance local participation in Guyana’s oil sector.
At the commissioning, Minister of Natural Resources Hon. Vickram Bharrat had said the centre is needed, as government and the private sector cooperate to carve out opportunities for local businesses and workers, where possible.
As Guyana’s oil and gas industry rapidly expands, the requirement to offset the human resource demand will be increased. Preparing Guyanese to cater for those requirements is a priority of the government the VP assured, noting too, that the upskilling of Guyanese will help in achieving the ambitious goals of the local content policy.
Government hopes to table and pass that policy, which will protect certain jobs for Guyanese, as well as ensure the transfer of skills and technology, before the end of 2021. The draft Local Content Legislation outlines a sliding scale of targets to be achieved by petroleum companies and their subcontractors.
One major highlight of the document proposes that Guyanese should be utilised in 152 oil sector services, with increased participation levels over a period of three to 10 years.
