– levels two and three mining courses to commence soon

AFTER completing the mineral prospecting and map-reading Level One Course at the Guyana Mining School, 29 Linden youths are now equipped with the basic skills needed to become employable in the mining sector.

The students, at a graduation ceremony on Friday, received their certificates after successfully completing six units of the Level One Course. Those who graduated secured over 80 per cent.

The programme is geared towards ensuring there is a future in mining, despite the advent of the oil and gas industry. According to Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman, who delivered the charge to the graduates, there is a bright future in mining.
“Mining is a part of who we are as Guyanese… we hope not to see an end to mining but to make it better, make it more sustainable and to make it more safe… mining is going to be forever a part of who we are and what we do,” he posited
Therefore, he said, it is imperative that the nation’s youths residing particularly in mining regions, are equipped with the skills needed. This is the mandate of the Guyana Mining School, according to Trotman, and efforts will be made to expand and strengthen the programme to not only focus on the technicalities of mining but on the initiation of safer mining practises in an effort to protect and conserve the environment.

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Guyana Mining School, MP Audwin Rutherford, underscored the progress the school has made since the commencement of training on January 31, 2019. Through the establishment of short-term goals, Rutherford said that now, courses are available at all technical and vocational institutions, across Guyana.
“We have refocused and is conscious that pre-training is best… the reason for our efforts to connect with the technical institutions as we feel a large percentage of our youths train at these institutions will gravitate to the mining industry,” he said.

The school’s projection now is to embark on training in skill sets applicable to the oil and gas sector. In addition, the school is moving towards accreditation and the process of registration has commenced. Director of the Mining School, Mr. John Applewhite- Hercules, detailed what the six- months course encompassed. This included six units, ranging from following regulations in the mining sector, application for exploration and mining rights/properties, effectively reading and interpreting maps and navigation instruments. The valedictorian of the 2019 class was Alleya Shahabudeen- Collins.

The graduates were charged to not see this as the end of their training in mining, but as the beginning. Before the end of the year, Level Three courses will be available in Linden, for those who desire upward mobility.