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| Consultant with C-EFE, Robert Gregory; Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Yolande Howard and Chairman of the TVET Council, Dr. Hensley Sobers listen attentively to feedback on the Recommendations.(A. Miller/BGIS) |
An employer-driven training system designed to create a workforce that can meet market needs will soon become a reality when the Competency-based Training Fund (CBTF) is established.
The CBTF will be executed under an initiative called the Skills for the Future Programme which is a part of the Barbados Human Resource Development Strategy and the Revised CARICOM Regional Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Strategy for Workforce Development and Economic Competitiveness.
Chairman of the TVET Council, Dr. Hensley Sobers, made this disclosure yesterday during a meeting held at the Hilton Barbados.
Dr. Sobers stated that the Skills for the Future Programme will comprise three components: the establishment of the CBTF; improving the quality and relevance of secondary and post-secondary education, and institutional strengthening.
Explaining the concept behind the programme, he said: "Barbados has been presented with a very unique opportunity to build on the foundation of our universally free general education system – which is celebrating 50 years this month."?? He added that this could be achieved "by incorporating a strong TVET system in which workforce training assessment and certification is based on occupational standards of competence that have been endorsed by employers, locally and regionally."
Dr. Sobers further noted that the CBTF would be administered by the TVET Council and pointed out that it sought to "support an employer-driven training system in which employers will collaborate with training providers to facilitate workforce training projects leading to standards-based training, assessment and certification".
Noting that the second objective, was to improve the quality and relevance of secondary and post-secondary education, he further explained that it had been designed to ensure that upon graduation, students had the core life skills necessary to enter the labour market or to continue studying.
He added that the objective of institutional strengthening was to enhance the physical capacity and the human resources capability of the TVET Council and other institutions responsible for delivering a national revamped TVET system.
Pointing out that the TVET Council was responsible for the repositioning and strengthening of Barbados’ TVET system, Mr. Sobers said this would be done through the introduction of the competence-based approach to workforce development.
"Through this means, we expect to achieve the TVET Council’s mission which is to develop a competent and competitive workforce in Barbados and the wider Caribbean," he observed.??