The Canadian government has announced a major project to train miners as part of a larger plan to tackle a shortage of skills in Guyana and other countries in CARICOM.The CARICOM Education For Employment Programme (C-EFE) is a Cdn$20M project undertaken through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and is being implemented by the Association of Canadian Community College (ACCC). Overseeing the programme in Guyana will be the Council For Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET).Mining official, Norman McLean,Wholesale Stitched Jerseys, makes a point during yesterday’s announcement of a new programme to boost skills in Guyana and the region.Yesterday, during an overview of the venture which local coordinators are hoping to launch in Guyana by September, it was disclosed that areas to be targeted will include agriculture and renewable energy.Over the next eight months or so, C-EFE will be consulting with local miners, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission and the miners’ body, Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association, to help prepare a workable programme for areas in the mining sector for which more training can be provided.According to Linda Cooke, the programme’s Senior Technical Advisor,Wholesale Jerseys, it is a fact that skilled labour makes up almost 70% of the workforce and while it was once frowned upon as a career choice,Wholesale Jerseys China, the approach has been quite different now.Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana, David Devine, who is pushing for the project to become a reality and who was among those present at the CIDA headquarters on Main and New Market yesterday, stressed that Canada was highly interested in boosting the skills level in the region,Cheap NFL Jerseys, which has been suffering a worrying flight over the years. Migration is one of the main reasons.Among those present yesterday were representatives of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, GGMC’s Chairman, Major General (rtd) Joe Singh, former Commissioner William Woolford, GGDMA’s President Patrick Harding, and executives of several mining outfits.The programme will seek to partner with places like the Government Technical Institute, the University of Guyana and even the planned mining school, which government has announced for the Linden area.Companies desirous of training employees can access programmes which will be developed to international standards and could even involve training right at the worksite, it was disclosed yesterday.It is no secret that skilled labour in some areas has remained a problem for Guyana.There are programmes running at the University of Guyana being paid for by mining companies,Cheap Hockey Jerseys, but the mining industry remains largely in a shortage situation.Yesterday, at least one company in exploration stages acknowledged that they were being forced to fly in technicians.Places like MACORP, which provide training for some of large equipment, will all be targeted for training.The coordinators have also started to talk to the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Natural Resources on the introduction of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training System (TVET).According to Cooke, the programmes will be demand-driven to meet the needs of the labour market and provide the skills necessary.Director of the Council for TVET in Guyana, Sydney Walters, yesterday disclosed that while two mining companies – Sandspring Resources and Union Manganese – will be contributing to two labs (one electrical and one mechanical for GTI),Cheap Jerseys, the reality is that much more is needed.GTI is offering a number of TVET courses but none will be custom designed like the one C-EFE is hoping to introduce in Guyana and other CARICOM countries.CTVET will be advising the Minister of Education on measures to ensure a comprehensive training best suited to needs in Guyana; expanding the scope of the industrial training; and possibly monitoring the evaluation of all TVET programmes in the country.In addition to GTI, the Guyana School of Agriculture, the GuySuCo Training Centre and other similar institutes will be targeted to partner.