Regions One, Three practical instruction centres to be completed by July

It is estimated that thousands of young people will soon have the opportunity to upskill
themselves to enter the working environment, as several Practical Instruction Centres (PICs) will
soon be completed.
It was pointed out that work is currently ongoing on centers at the North West Secondary School,
Region One and Fellowship, Region Three. In a recent interview, Dr. Ritesh Tularam, Deputy
Chief Education Officer (DCEO) with responsibility for technical education, said the initiative
will provide quality skills training in various occupational areas to satisfy the direct needs of the
respective communities.m
Tularam said the move is government’s way of recognising the contribution of Technical
Vocational Educational Training (TVET) to Guyana’s development at the social and economic
level. The DCEO said the centers will offer programmes to students, school drop-outs, and
women and girls, among others.
“Once we complete them (PICs), and hand them over to the Ministry of Education, we can move
swiftly, come September of this year, start to implement the respective Caribbean Vocational
Qualification (CVQ) (Level One) programmes in those areas,” Tularam said. He continued, “As
I said, those institutions are strategic, in terms of their design, purpose and our intention, because
ensuring training is disseminated to students, to trainees, the persons within those institutions,
within those areas. And this is where the Ministry of Education is headed in another five years or
so.”
It was pointed out that the education ministry intends to implement CVQ programmes in every
secondary school, to ensure the nation’s future leaders become well-rounded individuals. Dr.
Tularam said this step, however, can be quite tricky to implement especially in communities as
there is still stigma attached to TVET education. Tularam is encouraging persons to participate in
the programmes, which he said will benefit them, and the country, as a whole.
“Students can use that qualification, and they can have the mobility that we are talking about,
because of this recognition hence these projects or schools under this project will make that
significant impact in aiding or realising the ministry’s vision to provide quality, equity, and
relevance of technical education,” Tularam stressed. He added that the programme is made
possible through the Guyana Skills Development and Employability Project (GSDEP) funded by
the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).