Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 15, 2019 (S.T.E.P.) — Minister of Tourism, International Trade, Industry and Commerce the Hon Lindsay Grant is saying the Skills Training Empowerment Programme (STEP) is an important programme and those on it will be given opportunities to acquire certification that will make them marketable not only at home, but throughout the region.
“For me, the Skills Training Empowerment Programme is a very, very important programme,” said the Hon Grant. “Your work is very, very important for St. Kitts and Nevis, because without you – we have health problems. Without you – we have safety problems.”
The Hon Grant, who is also the Area Parliamentary Representative for St. Christopher Four, made the remarks on Thursday March 14 at the Old Road Community Centre during the opening ceremony of a Soft Skills Training session for community enhancement workers on the Skills Training Empowerment Programme (STEP) drawn from Constituency Number Four.
Facilitating the one-day training session was Dr Neals Chitan, who is an International Social Skills Consultant and Crime Reduction Specialist, and President of Motiv-8 For Change International. He noted that the session was on conflict management where they looked at the positive conflict, and negative conflict.
Present at the opening ceremony, which was chaired by STEP Director Mr Wendell Wattley, were Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for STEP Mr Osbert DeSuza; Mr William Phillip, STEP Field Coordinator; Mr Jason McKoy, STEP Field Officer, and Mr Clive Nias, STEP Accountant.
“This STEP training programme is to help you to develop and to exhibit the attitude that will make you marketable – marketable in the workplace for gaining employment in the future,” the Hon Grant told the STEP community enhancement workers. “Very shortly we are going to ensure that we develop our CVQs so that you get a certification and you could take that certification anywhere in the Caribbean and get work. That is the level we want to get at, and this is a start.”
On the importance of the subject at hand, conflict resolution, the Hon Grant informed the community enhancement workers that the aim was to help them get along as workers noting that there were no two people who are alike. The Honourable Minister advised that the focus of the programme is on skills training; both hard skills and soft skills, for persons participating in the programme to be equipped with the correct strategies, ideas and attitude.
The Hon Grant informed the community enhancement workers that apart from conflict resolution, a series of sessions will be held focusing on money management to learn how to save, and time management to ensure that they do not turn up at 9:30 o’clock for a 9:00 o’clock job. He however congratulated them for being punctual at the training session observing that when he arrived at the community centre “most of you were already here – so you were on time, and that is a good start.”
The next Soft Skills Training session organised for STEP community enhancement workers will be held on Thursday March 21 at the Edgar Gilbert Sports Complex pavilion in Molineux. Skills Training Empowerment Programme groups to be targeted will be from Bourryeau, Lodge, Ottley’s, Phillips, and Molineux.
