ExxonMobil is positioning long-term science and engineering education as central to Guyana’s workforce development, with executives and students underscoring the impact of hands-on learning and expanded access to technical training.
In a video released by the company on February 4, Alvin Abraham, who heads the ExxonMobil Foundation, said access to strong academic programs is essential for young people, especially in higher-needs communities.
“We really do believe that access to high-quality education and programs is critical for young people, particularly those growing up in higher-needs communities and to support them on that journey to a really strong future in the workforce,” Abraham said. “This type of program can absolutely help change kids’ lives.”
The initiative forms part of ExxonMobil’s US$100 million commitment over 10 years, announced in partnership with the Government of Guyana, to strengthen science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education nationwide. The company said the program will reach thousands of teachers and tens of thousands of students through teacher training, after-school programs, college readiness support and career pathways.
“With the Guyana STEM initiative, ExxonMobil makes a US$100 million commitment over 10 years to transform STEM education in partnership with the Government of Guyana…[which] will reach thousands of teachers and tens of thousands of students,” Abraham said.
The push for expanded STEM access gained momentum during President Irfaan Ali’s visit to the ExxonMobil campus in Houston, where he toured the ExxonMobil Foundation’s Teen Engineering and Tech Center (TETC). Abraham recalled that during the tour, the President paused and expressed a desire to replicate the model across Guyana.
“He said, I want one of these centers in every single region across Guyana,” Abraham stated. “This could be something that could help transform STEM education in Guyana.”
Samuel De Barros, a 10th-grade Guyanese student who has spent two years at the Teen Engineering and Tech Center, also appeared in the video. He said the experience has reshaped his academic ambitions.
“The moment I walked in at the TETC for the first day, it was exciting, because we use tools, laser cutting and also robotics,” De Barros said. “It made me fell in love with engineering more, because we do a lot of hands on stuff.”
He said he also spoke directly to President Ali during the visit.
“I told him, specifically, I want a program like this to be open in Guyana, so students like me back home can get the same experience,” De Barros said.
Omeka Archer, a Wells Engineer with ExxonMobil Guyana Limited and an alumna of the University of Guyana, also appearing in the video, framed the investment as critical to the country’s development trajectory.
“For a country that’s growing as quickly as Guyana, investing into STEM is investing into your future,” Archer said. “If you give young people tools, space and opportunity, they will rise to education, and this STEM center will do just that for all the students that we have here in Guyana.”
De Barros said he intends to return home with the knowledge he gains.
“Whatever I learn here, I want to take it back home and teach it to the other students,” he said. “I want to be an engineer, and that’s a goal, and I would love to…work back in my home country.”
