Guyana continues to build its human resource capacity in the oil and gas sector, with 30 young men and women now undertaking training in an Advanced Diploma in Oil and Gas.
An induction ceremony was held on Monday at the new Guyana Technical Training College Inc. (GTTCI) campus at Port Mourant, Berbice.
Speaking to the students, Minister of Labour and Manpower Planning Keoma Griffith highlighted Guyana’s continued economic growth, noting that the country’s economy is projected to grow by 20.8 per cent in 2026, while the non-oil economy is expected to expand by 10.2 per cent.
He said that during the first half of the year, Guyana produced an average of 902,000 barrels of oil per day.
With a fifth production vessel expected to come on stream later this year, he said the country’s installed production capacity is expected to surpass one million barrels per day.
The minister stressed the importance of ensuring that Guyanese are equipped with the skills needed to take advantage of the opportunities emerging from the country’s economic transformation.
“The question before all of us here today is not whether opportunity exists in Guyana. The question is whether all of you, our people, will be able to seize every opportunity,” he said.
“Machines can be imported, steel can be shipped, and capital can be borrowed, but the skilled hands and trained minds that design, build, operate, maintain, and protect a modern economy must be developed, and they must be developed deliberately,” the minister said.
Minister Griffith said the government is taking the skills gap seriously, pointing to the Decent Work Country Programme 2025–2030, which identifies a shortage of skilled workers in several technical fields.
“It identifies an acute shortage of skilled workers in technical fields such as mechanics, heavy machinery operation, and engineering. These are the very disciplines that you are being exposed to today and that you are all about to enter,” he said.
He also highlighted the growing role Berbice is expected to play in Guyana’s industrial development, saying the region is poised to become a major centre of economic activity over the coming years.
“Guyana is poised to be the industrial capital of the Caribbean, and I promise you, Berbice is poised to be the industrial capital of Guyana. Berbice is where a lot of the action is going to take place in the next three to four years, and that is why it was important for this facility to be placed right here in Berbice,” the labour minister emphasised.
Among those taking advantage of the training opportunity is Rocky Ramphal, who has already spent four years working in the oil and gas sector.
For Ramphal, the programme represents an opportunity to advance his career while gaining the knowledge needed to eventually help train others entering the industry.
“This is a great opportunity for young people to move up in a booming industry. For young people in Guyana, regardless of where you are from, whether it’s Georgetown, Berbice, Linden or the hinterland regions, no matter where you are from, this is an opportunity for us young people. We get to develop ourselves and, in turn, help develop the country,” he told the Department of Public Information.
The latest group represents the sixth cohort of trainees and is the second to receive training at the world-class GTTCI Track 1 Oil and Gas Campus at Port Mourant, Berbice.
