The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The planned National Apprenticeship Programme will impact “big numbers” with ambitions to have the first entrants working in the Bahamian maritime industry as early as April/May 2024.

Peter Goudie, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) labour division head, told Tribune Business that the initiative will have “a ripple effect” through the entire Bahamian economy as well as society through increasing employability, productivity and reducing the private sector’s demand for foreign labour.

Through certifying graduates, he explained that the scheme - once enshrined in law and operational - will provide employers with a pool of skilled labour whose abilities have been verified, thus improving the overall quality of the workforce and the job prospects of individual Bahamians.

“We’re hoping it will be starting very soon, April or May,” Mr Goudie told this newspaper, with the enabling legislation due to be debated by the House of Assembly next week on February 28. “We hope to have 100 apprentices working in maritime and, at the same time, another bunch will be doing soft skills in math and English and moving into maritime.

“We’re talking about big numbers. The Government is very serious about this. I’m very happy we’re moving ahead with this and that it’s going to be as big as it is. Let’s put it this way; we’re talking a lot of money, and a very high commitment from the minister, the Prime Minister and the Government. Pia Glover-Rolle [minister of labour and the public service] has been very, very supportive and very involved.”

The existing 40 year-old Apprenticeship Act was supposed to have been replaced, and the Programme launched, several years ago but the funding - which was provided by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) - had to be diverted to finance social and economic support, and other assistance, in the wake of the twin emergencies created by Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Mr Goudie acknowledged. “We’ve put a lot of time and effort into it, but it’s nice to see it’s going to bear fruit. It’s very satisfying.” Besides maritime, industries such as construction and information and communications technology (ICT) are also being targeted by the National Apprenticeship Programme, which will add other sectors as it grows.

“The main thing is that we’re going to be certifying these individuals,” he added, “and then they’ll be able to go ahead on good long-term employment. It’s going to be hundreds and hundreds over the next few years. This is not a one-year programme. As we have people graduate we will be training just as many.

“It’s good on all those fronts, but it’s also going to be eliminating work permits. It’ll be putting Bahamians to work and employers will not have to hire people from away. At the end of the day it will save a lot of money, as people will not have to pay moving expenses and other costs. We’ll have more Bahamians working and will reduce the unemployment rate.”

Mr Goudie said the training and certification, via institutions such as the University of the Bahamas (UoB) and Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI), should also result in greater individual and workforce productivity.

“You’re increasing productivity, increasing the productivity of the country and increasing the ability to export,” he added. “We have a high trade deficit [almost $3.5bn] and if we can increase productivity and make our goods more available and able to ship out, that’s good news.

“Bahamian businesses want certified Bahamians to work for them. If it’s a Bahamian, they’re going to be staying here. You won’t have to worry about foreigners leaving. People will be more employable, and it will have a ripple effect right through the country. It’s been needed for years. We weren’t happy when we had to abandon it before when we knew for years we needed this. Now it’s coming to fruition.

“I can’t be more supportive of something that is going to work and going to continue to work for the next few years. We’re going to continue to make sure it works, and people will be certified. Then you know somebody has been trained properly and they have the knowledge and skills that you need,” Mr Goudie continued.

“It’s just going to help the country, and a lot of people that would not normally get a job it’s going to help them get certified and then they’ll have the credentials to go anywhere in that business. It’s good stuff.”