After launching its inaugural oil and gas seminar for high schools students last November, the Guyana Oil and Gas Energy Chamber (GOGEC) has successfully trained students from 18 schools, its President Manniram Prashad told OilNOW on Friday.
“We have completed about 18 schools so far. That’s mainly in the Georgetown, East Coast area, [and] East Bank…” he said.
“This is very important that we start from the 5th form level, the [Caribbean Examinations Council] CXC students, so that when they go on to university, they would have an opportunity and they would have a little experience through the Guyana Oil and Gas Energy Chamber as to how and what are the benefits in the oil and gas sector.”
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GOGEC intends to meet an accumulated total of about 60 schools before the year ends and is so far on target.
Manniram said GOGEC plans to target Essequibo, Berbice and Linden schools, starting in June. He said the training has been going quite well, and that teachers have been complimenting the Chamber for the initiative. Many people are volunteering to join the initiative and speak to the students. Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn is one such person, Prashad said, pointing out, “So, we’re not short of staff.”
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GOGEC is employing creative methods for the seminars. One practice, Prashad explained, is that a person who has “achieved something of stature in the country” would be asked to speak to students from the secondary school they attended.
GOGEC connects the students with training opportunities and works closely with the University of Guyana (UG). This institution has undergraduate and masters degrees, as well as a suite of Executive Level Professional Courses instrumental in this sector.
Prashad explained that the high school courses form preliminary insight into some of the opportunities that exist in the sector.
“They will be aware that they can go into this sector, because they have already learned through our training program,” he said.
The training is done free of cost and at the end, the students are presented with a certificate of attendance.
