Prime Minister Commends JNSC Youth Training Programmes for Assisting to Drive Down Unemployment
Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness has commended the success of national youth training programmes in addressing unemployment, skills gaps, and youth disengagement.
Speaking on Friday (June 20, 2025) at the Jamaica National Service Corps (JNSC) Skills Training Closing Out Ceremony, the Prime Minister noted that the programme has contributed to Jamaica’s unemployment rate now at a historic low of 3.5 per cent.
Prime Minister Holness said this achievement is the result of sustained investment in training and workforce development initiatives such as those led by HEART/NSTA Trust and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF).
“When I hear Dr. Ingleton say that within the first few months of the financial year, you have enrolled over 50,000 youngsters. When I hear the Chief of Defence Staff say that the JDF within the year has engaged 52,000 young people, it’s incredible. When we give the statistics that unemployment in Jamaica is now at 3.5%, there are those who will naysay it and say it’s not so. But I hope you have realized that 150,000 persons have enrolled in HEART over the last two years. And they are in all kinds of programmes. Households right across Jamaica, their young people are being pulled into the world of work,” said the Prime Minister.
Many of these individuals, once considered unattached youth, are now productively employed in the JDF, the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the Jamaica Customs Agency, the Fire Brigade, and the broader private sector. This outcome, the Prime Minister noted, is proof of the nation’s strategic success in transitioning young people into meaningful employment.
The National Workforce Development Programme is intentionally designed to tackle three persistent economic challenges: high numbers of unattached youth, misalignment between employer needs and employee skills, and the widespread skills mismatch within the labour market.
“Once you fix the attitude, your aptitude becomes boundless. And that is why we have devised these programmes to focus on dealing with that element that we are placing in the labour force. And believe me when I tell you, if you come to the world of work with the right attitude, you will go further than the most brilliant and qualified and certified person,” the Prime Minister stated.
Dr. Holness highlighted the training model used by the JNSC, which starts with a four-week personal development camp focusing on discipline, life skills, conflict resolution, and mental resilience.
Participants then receive three months of skills-based instruction aligned to high-demand sectors.
In this graduating cohort, 20 participants earned NVQ Level 2 certification in administrative assistance, while 28 completed the NCTVET programme in electrical installations.