Trinidad and Tobago Newsday Central Bank tackling country’s skills deficit Thursday, August 15 2013 CENTRAL Bank Governor, Jwala Rambarran said the current skills shortage facing the country continues to be a concern for employers and the Central Bank must step up and do its part in tackling this acute problem. Governor Rambarran recently announced the Bank’s move to implement changes to its Vacation Internship Programme to improve and expand the level of training interns receive while they are at the bank. At the closing ceremony of the Bank’s Vacation Internship Programme, Governor Rambarran stressed the Bank must, “contribute to narrowing the country’s skills deficit.” Governor Rambarran says more advanced training in entrepreneurship and business will be provided to interns at the Bank to take interns from employees to employers and business leaders. The Governor says this expanded form of training for interns is crucial at this time in the labour market as, “Trinidad and Tobago is also facing a national skills deficit. Many employers frequently complain that many young people just out of the education system have neither the requisite skills nor the right attitude to work. In effect, there is a disconnect among our young people, employers and tertiary education providers.” Governor Rambarran believes the Bank must address this disconnect through its Vacation Internship Programme which celebrated ten years this year. Over the past decade, the Bank has made several modifications to its Vacation Internship Programme to ensure it remains relevant to the changing demands of the workplace. One key change was the introduction of a career training series with structured classroom sessions in areas such as personal financial planning, presentation and communication. The bank’s interns also participate in Community Outreach Projects. Governor Rambarran says the objective is to foster a high level of civic responsibility in the Vacation Interns while at the same time enabling them to make a positive difference in the community. This year, the twenty-four were able to provide assistance to the Oxford Street (St Clare) Home for senior citizens.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:12:59 +0000