Universities join forces to ease shortage of engineers

The chronic shortage of qualified engineers in Jamaica could soon be a thing of the past as three of the island’s leading universities have forged a partnership which will see them training at least 1,000 annually, writes Nadine Wilson-Harris for The Gleaner.

Speaking with Gleaner reporters recently, Dr Paul Aiken, director of engineering and deputy dean of the faculty of science and technology at the University of the West Indies, Mona campus, said it will partner with the University of Technology, Jamaica, and the Caribbean Maritime University to train these engineers. "We want to produce 1,000 engineers per year between all the universities, and right now we are only at 200," Aiken told editors and reporters at the forum.

While stakeholders contend that the introduction of liquefied natural gas in Jamaica's energy mix will result in significant benefits and opportunities for the country, there are concerns that a shortage of engineers could be a problem. "A lot of companies come to Jamaica to set up business, but two things, the energy and the workforce, are not there," Aiken said.
Full report on The Gleaner Jamaica site