Building on Guyana’s experience, Commonwealth targets 10 million young people for digital training
By Kurt Campbell in Antigua
Thousands of Guyanese have already benefited from Commonwealth-linked digital training programmes, as the organisation now seeks to expand access to skills and entrepreneurship opportunities for 10 million young people over the next five years.
The announcement by Commonwealth Secretary-General Shirley Botchwey at the launch of the joint forums and events of the 2026 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda on Monday builds on years of efforts to help young people and other citizens across member countries develop skills for a changing job market.
Botchwey said the Commonwealth was working with private-sector partners, foundations and high-net-worth individuals to provide digital skills and entrepreneurship training to 10 million young people over five years. She also announced plans to mobilise more than US$1 billion in credit for renewable energy.
For Guyana, the announcement comes against the background of previous programmes that have already attracted significant participation from local learners.
In 2020, the Ministry of Education partnered with the Commonwealth of Learning and Coursera to introduce the Workforce Recovery Initiative, which provided access to 4,000 free online courses from universities and other recognised institutions.
The programme was introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, when job losses and disruptions to education increased the need for people to acquire new skills or improve their qualifications.
The response in Guyana was significant. By September 2020, the Ministry of Education reported that 33,505 Guyanese had registered for courses, with 709 having graduated at that stage. The initiative was also benefiting learners across the Caribbean, with 3,000 people from 11 countries completing courses through the regional programme.
The number of Guyanese registrations subsequently increased. By the time the initiative ended in March 2021, more than 55,000 Guyanese had registered, while 10,567 people had acquired a total of 54,348 certificates, according to the Ministry of Education.
The Commonwealth of Learning later collaborated with the Education Ministry on its Skills for Work initiative, which offered six-month scholarships for 800 Guyanese at a time. Participants could pursue training in areas including digital marketing, graphic design, Android development and entrepreneurship through Coursera, Grow with Google and Udemy.
These programmes demonstrated the appetite among Guyanese for opportunities to gain qualifications and develop skills through online learning, while also connecting local learners to courses offered by international universities and technology companies.
The country has since expanded its digital-skills efforts.
In 2024, the Guyana-Coursera National Training Partnership was launched to provide free education and skills training to citizens and public-sector employees. By January 2025, the Department of Public Information reported that approximately 12,380 people had completed courses under the initiative, covering areas such as data analysis, leadership and management, patient care and software development.
More recently, the Government announced plans to train 8,000 Guyanese in essential digital skills during 2026 through the Industry and Innovation Unit. The training is intended to reach communities along the coast and in the hinterland, while the Government also reported that 166 of a planned 200 ICT hubs had been established in hinterland communities.
There have also been targeted efforts to introduce girls to emerging technologies. In June 2026, the Industry and Innovation Unit reported that 168 girls across four regions had received foundational training in artificial intelligence and digital skills through the Guyanese Girls Code Programme.
These initiatives are important as Guyana seeks to prepare its workforce for an economy increasingly shaped by technology, while ensuring that young people outside major urban centres are not left behind.
The Commonwealth’s proposed expansion could provide another avenue for training, but questions remain about how Guyana and other Caribbean countries will participate, which skills will be prioritised and how those trained will be connected to employment and entrepreneurship opportunities.
Source: NEW ROOMS SITE
