Minister for Employment, Agni Deo Singh says his Ministry is actively working on formulating improved policies and programs to address the issue of skill migration.
Responding to the oral question, Can the Minister inform Parliament whether the Ministry has undertaken any survey or study to ascertain which industry sectors are affected the most and consequently, whether any policy initiative has been put in place to address the skill shortage by the private sector?, which was asked by Opposition Whip Alvick Maharaj, Singh said they are actively engaged in discussions.
He said a multi-stakeholder approach is needed to address skill shortage and all parties need to work together to get practical solutions.
Singh said they are working on various incentives and highlighted that one such program is the apprenticeship scheme.
He said the hourly pay of the apprentices is $2.97 and they e are now offering the employers an incentive to pay another $2 to top it up with $2 to make it $4.97 and they are also paying 50 per cent of the school fee through Tertiary Scholarship Loan Scheme to focus on priority training and workforce development needs.
Singh went on to say that all sectors and areas of employment have been affected by skill migration and this is a global phenomenon and stated that they have plans to collaborate with development partners to tap into new opportunities that would further equip and enhance the training capabilities and accreditation of local institutions.
