Opposition Member of Parliament, Jermaine Figueira, has challenged the Government to readjust the National Budget so that it can cater more for youth empowerment and youth development.

Figueira, who also serves as the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee and is a full time high school teacher, told the Assembly that while the Ministry of Labour boasts of providing training opportunities for young people, those opportunities are not matched with job placements.

He said the Government’s efforts to engage youth through the Youth Employment and Skills Training (YEST) programme have been insufficient at best.

He said the 350 youths trained under the programme in 2024 is extremely low when compared to the size of the youth population of Guyana.

MP Figueira said to compound the situation, the Administration has also failed to articulate a comprehensive strategy to engage young people in meaningful, sustainable employment.

“The sad reality is that Linden Enterprise Network with millions of dollars is unacceptable. 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, not one of the youths you would have trained was able to access the resources so that they can utilize the skills that you would have given them to start their own businesses and employ themselves and their families and create employment opportunities for others,” he said.

MP Figueira said what is needed is an updated and inclusive policy that focuses on youth empowerment and offers real opportunities for personal and professional growth.

He said the Budget, in general, lacks fresh and innovative measures, adding that while there may be “incremental adjustments” and some “cosmetic proposals,” there is no bold vision to address the structural challenges facing our economy, public sector, and social services.

“Mr. Speaker, the policies in this budget do not reflect a nuanced understanding of the multifaceted issues that people face. Instead of symbolic gestures, we need comprehensive policies that directly impact the lives of our people, policies that focus on the delivery of quality healthcare, improved nutrition, food security, job creation and poverty alleviation in a safe Guyana,” MP Figueira told the House.

Figueira’s presentation did not sit well with the Minister of Labour, Joseph Hamilton, who said that the arguments put forward by the Opposition Member are “hollow” and “shallow.”

From the onset, he told the House that the Linden Enterprise Network (LEN) was mismanaged by the former Government.

“He spoke about the LEN Programme but failed to make the point that the LEN programme was destroyed and became bankrupt because the PNC loaned money to themselves and they never replenished the fund. That’s the reality of the LEN programme! Many of the PNC members of Region 10, Mr. Figueira never replenished the fund, so, the fund was bankrupt,” Minister Hamilton argued.  

He said contrary to the arguments put forward by the Opposition, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration trained more than 12,000 persons under the Board of Industrial Training (BIT) Programme since taking office, compared to the less than 8,000 persons trained under the APNU+AFC Administration.

He said those persons are now better positioned to gain employment in a number of important sectors.

“I can report to this National Assembly that in four years under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic, we have trained 12,765, and y’all care about young people, in 653 programmes across the length and breadth of this country,” he argued.

Another 4,000 persons, he added, will be trained under the BIT Programme in 2025, while the Ministry of Labour in partnership with the G Mining Ventures approximately 1,200 persons in the initial phase another 1,000 in the second phase.  

Pointing to the Oil and Gas Sector, the Labour Minister said the APNU+AFC comes to the House to complain about the lack of training in the sector, when it failed to train Occupation Safety and Health (OSH) officers, during its time in office.

“They trained not a occupation, safety and health officer who can go out there and inspect a FPSO and a drill ship. Not one!…They didn’t train not one labour officer, who can go and do inspections on the FPSOs and drills, and they come here with their pretense. I can report to this National Assembly that presently, under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic we have nine officers that can visit those drill ships – five OSH Officers and four labour officers,” he said.

In 2024, the officers conducted nine visits to the FPSOs, and it is their intention to conduct another eight inspections in 2025, the House heard.  

He said the APNU+AFC must be honest about its track record in office.

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