USAID/Guyana SKYE Project Holds Employment Sector Advisory Group Meeting and Labor Market Assessment Stakeholder Validation Seminar

September 13, 2012

Georgetown, Guyana –The USAID/ Guyana Skills and Knowledge for Youth Employment (SKYE) Project hosted an Employment Sector Advisory Group Meeting and a Labor Market Assessment Stakeholder Validation Seminar on September 13, 2012. This meeting established the Employment Sector Advisory Group's membership, provided orientation for members and beneficiaries, and shared the initial results of a labor market assessment with relevant stakeholders.

U.S. Ambassador to Guyana D. Brent Hardt led the event, noting that the SKYE Project is focused on “strengthening an environment that facilitates youth development, supporting the reintegration to society of high-risk populations,  supporting Guyana's youth in their efforts to find employment or start their own businesses, and supporting greater engagement of young people as active Guyanese citizens.” The project’s target youth beneficiaries are school dropouts, youth who have completed formal education or training but do not have the necessary skills to find employment, and youth involved in the juvenile justice system.

The Employment Sector Advisory Group will play a direct role in improving the employment capabilities of vulnerable and at-risk youths in Guyana. Members of this group will provide guidance and participate in project activities, identify employment sector alliances to maximize project resources, and assist the project team in identifying employment opportunities for at-risk youth beneficiaries.

The Labor Market Assessment (LMA) Stakeholder Validation Seminar served as an opportunity for partners to review and validate data generated from the labor market assessment. Seminar participants came from the private and public sectors and academia. The initial findings of the LMA highlighted the key entry points into the workforce for SKYE’s target beneficiaries in both formal and informal sectors for Regions 4, 6, 9 and 10. The LMA also provided information on projected demands for labor over the next three years and identified sectors with the greatest potential for new enterprise development.