The University College of the Cayman Islands on Friday officially launched a new free training programme, funded by a $405,000 European Union grant, which will pay for 55 Caymanians to train in the fields of tourism, ICT, renewable energy and construction.
UCCI has been working with WORC, the Chamber of Commerce, the Cayman Islands Contractors Association, GreenTech and others in the private sector to bring the programme to fruition and make it available to unemployed and underemployed Caymanians.
Speakers at the launch event explained that the project is intended to help Caymanians gain sustainable employment and achieve long-term social and economic resilience in four sectors – sustainable construction, renewable energy, Information Communications Technology and tourism.
Dean of UCCI’s Professional and Technical Education and Training Division Paul Puckerin said the programme aims to ensure that “each student will walk away with an internationally benchmarked certification, which makes them not only employable, but marketable, if they decide they want to travel and work outside of the Cayman Islands”.
Upon successful completion of their courses, the students will receive certificates from a number of internationally-recognised institutes, including the UK’s City and Guilds and the National Center for Construction Education and Research, known as NCCER, which is used in the US and Canada.
Puckerin said, “This project is part of UCCI’s commitment to address the educational and innovation needs of Cayman’s main economic drivers. It is an example of private-public partnership that contributes towards a more sustainable future for Cayman, both in terms of environmental sustainability and in terms of building a more resilient and skilled workforce.”
The students, who were registered with WORC, will begin their year-long courses, which consist of classroom and practical training, as well as on-the-job internships, on Monday, 18 July. The programme will be extended in September to Cayman Brac, where another 15 students will take part.
RESEMBID grant
The money for the programme is being provided by the Caribbean Overseas Countries and Territories ‘Resilience, Sustainable Energy and Marine Biodiversity Programme’, known as RESEMBID, which is funded by the EU. RESEMBID has been providing grants to British Overseas Territories to help them recover from the COVID-19 crisis.
Nnyeka Prescod, programme manager of RESEMBID, told the students at the launch that the new UCCI project “will have far-reaching impacts beyond you; there will be impacts on your families, your communities and, of course, local industry”.
She added that the project highlighted that Cayman was “moving swiftly” to meet some of the 17 pillars of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including creating productive employment and offering quality education.
The project’s manager, Cleveland Julien, in an earlier interview with the Cayman Compass said the programme would be open to 50 Caymanians, aged 18 to 45. However, due to the high volume of applicants – more than 140 people applied and 75 were interviewed – it was decided to accept 55 applicants.
The student’s training begins on 18 July and will continue until February 2023, after which the participants will undergo a three-month internship, with placements relevant to their chosen field of study.
Julien, in a statement Friday, said, “We are still actively searching for more business partners and volunteers. Volunteers from all walks of life can help us to create a bright future for these 55 Caymanians. We truly look forward to seeing what their futures hold.”
Among the students who have signed up is Keyona Hanson, 21, who heard about the programme through her mother. She will be taking part in the tourism course.
She told the Compass she feels “in this economic climate, the more qualifications I can get, the better”.
She has previous experience in the tourism field, having done an internship though the government’s Passport2Success programme. “I liked it and thought I’d try it again,” she said.
RESEMBID Programme Director Fabian McKinnon, in a statement, said the project would provide practical support to the people of Cayman.
“We are happy to see this significant milestone marking the start of this important project but thrilled that even more persons than we had originally anticipated will be trained by the course,” he said. “These 55 people will soon be better able to contribute to a sustainably skilled work force for the Cayman Islands and RESEMBID is proud to be part of that.”
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