THERE has been much focus concentrated of recent times on juvenile delinquency, teenage pregnancy, gang wars, and many anti-social, even criminal behaviour of the society’s young people, and many hypocritical bleeding hearts seek to cast blame on everyone – especially Government, for the breakdown of individual and societal morality. But the Government has instituted a continuum of programmes and facilities to address the needs of every strata of society; albeit incrementally, because Guyana is still a developing nation, slowly emerging from the dark morass of the past: and many of these programmes target the young and vulnerable in society, driving empowering mechanics and dynamics.
The Board of Industrial Training recently celebrated its 100th year of existence at a ceremony held at the Umana Yana in Kingston.
Held under the theme “A century of Empowering Youths with Technical and Vocational skills for life”, the ceremony featured presentation of awards to long-serving masters and staff. Among the companies to receive awards were Guyana National Industrial Corporation, the Guyana Sugar Corporation, Guyana Power and Light, and Transport and Harbours Department. 
Minister of Labour, Manzoor Nadir, speaking at the event, expressed congratulations on behalf of President Bharrat Jagdeo and Prime Minister Samuel Hinds.
Minister Nadir stated that the Board has come a long way in empowering youths and added that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will also come on board to provide training to young people.
Chairman of the BIT, Dr. Dale Bisnauth stated that the anniversary is a milestone of life and history, reflected on the past. He noted that the Board could not have reached such an achievement without the contributions of the persons who have served over the years.
The Board of Industrial Training (BIT) was established in 1910 under the Industrial Training Act Chapter 39:04, Laws of Guyana. At the time of its promulgation, the Industrial Training Act was described thus: “An Act to provide for the promotion of Industrial Training”. As such, the focus of BIT was formal Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), as it relates to apprenticeship within the industrial sector.
These apprenticeship programmes have four-year duration, with provisions made for shortened two-year programmes in special cases where the applicant would have had previous technical training.
Training is offered in various engineering fields, such aspects as mechanical, electrical and building construction with funding sometimes provided through collaboration with the private sector and other Non Governmental Agencies.
They also aim to ensure that the nation is provided with an adequately trained workforce in both industrial and commercial sectors of the economy.
One such programme that is currently under execution through funding by the Government of Guyana, and which receives the co-operation of the public and the private sectors is the National Training Programme for Youth Empowerment (NTPYE), which commenced in September, 2005 and which has benefitted over 2200 youths to date. They have been trained and certified at the semi-skilled level through this project.
Thus far for this year, 509 youths were trained under the NTPYE, 185 from Regions One and Two, 132 from the Essequibo Islands, Region Three, 90 from Region Four and 102 from Region Five.
NTPYE is the vision of President Bharrat Jagdeo and was launched as part of the Administration’s policy to reduce the level of unemployment and better the living standards of citizens. Youths from 15 to 25 years from the 10 administrative regions have benefited from training and have acquired jobs through the Ministry of Labour’s Central Recruitment and Manpower Agency.
BIT expanded its role in 2009 though training programmes for single parents, with the aim of providing marketable skills as a means of creating or increasing income generation. A total of 375 persons have been trained under the single parent programme in employable skills that are in demand on the labour market and many graduates have received a grant to assist in the establishment of small businesses.
The Single Parent Training last year exceeded its target, with 372 parents, including a male, graduating from an initial count of 412 applicants.
The parents were trained in Childcare, Care for the Elderly, Pharmacy Bond Clerk, Medical Records, Health Care, Cosmetology, Sewing, Catering, Office Procedures and Information Technology. They also received the necessary equipment to begin their trade.
The Women of Worth (WoW) programme is another pathway to empowerment, this time targeting mainly single mothers.
These initiatives are all part of Government’s strategy to reduce the level of unemployment and improve the living standards of its population.
All across the country the needs of the people are being met, although there is still much more to be done.
However, no-one could help those bent on a self-destructive path. Government could only provide the facilitating mechanisms, but without the individual will and commitment to upward mobility, those determined to take divergent avenues can only self-immolate in the fires of negativity and unconstructive, destructive, and even criminal actions.