HGP Nightly News – Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Gail Teixeira is urging young people to take advantage of the many job opportunities available across the country, saying vacancies are going unfilled even as some persons continue to complain that there is no work. Speaking at the recent sod-turning ceremony for the Bartica Hospital, Teixeira said Guyana is experiencing a major demand for labour and that young people should be willing to work, gain experience and earn while continuing to build their qualifications.
According to the minister, there is no real basis for persons to claim that opportunities do not exist, since many advertised vacancies are not attracting enough applicants. “When we are advertising jobs, people are not applying. And then they say there is no work,” she said, adding that “there is too much work in Guyana right now” and not enough people to fill available positions. She encouraged young people not to dismiss jobs simply because they may not be their first choice, but to use them as stepping stones toward larger goals.
Teixeira pointed to several training opportunities available to young people, including the Guyana Online Academy of Learning programme and the Board of Industrial Training programme. She also noted that thousands of nurses, teachers, doctors and engineers are being trained across the country, saying the opportunities available today are greater than they were in previous generations. In her view, more effort is needed to connect young people with those options and encourage them to act.
The minister also drew from her own experience, saying sacrifice is often necessary to achieve long-term goals. “I worked in a factory making car filters in order to put myself through university, I was a domestic worker,” she recalled. She also joked that she was once a poor waitress and was fired after repeatedly spilling tea and coffee. But her wider point was that she worked wherever she had to because she wanted to move forward. “If you want something badly enough, you’re going to sacrifice to get it,” she said.
Teixeira urged young people to take risks and try different career paths, whether in construction, plumbing, electrical work, engineering or other fields. “Take a chance. Try it. If it doesn’t work, you start over again. You’re young,” she said. She argued that early work experience can help young people discover their strengths, build discipline and prepare for better opportunities later.
She also said Guyana’s changing economy means the country needs a more educated and adaptable workforce. According to Teixeira, new types of jobs are emerging that would not have been imagined just a few years ago, requiring stronger education and professional training. She added that the public service must also be modernised, with some roles redefined because older job descriptions no longer match the needs of the country.
