WILLEMSTAD - Recently, the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten indicated that the construction sector, alongside tourism, is one of the sectors that most helps drive the economy of Curaçao.
Economic growth does not automatically mean prosperity for the people. This growth is one of exclusion rather than inclusion, as this growth does not translate into a socioeconomic vision that can contribute to creating job opportunities and prosperity for the population.
It is a reality that currently, the majority of jobs in construction are occupied by foreigners and not by local youth. After discussions with contractors, they indicated that they are forced to request workers from abroad because there are not enough local youths with the necessary skills to work in the construction sector.
This means that local youth and their families are not benefiting from the growth in this sector and are not being stimulated to also benefit from it, which is leading to marginalization.
It is important that the government, together with the private sector, creates programs that combine theory and practice so that local people can be "ready for construction" and also benefit from this growth quickly.
In the same way that in the previous government, the "Ready for Tourism" program was implemented in the tourism sector, which continues under the current government.
Therefore, we propose a plan to train and prepare the youth of Curaçao in conjunction with the construction sector to be "Ready for Construction."
The program must create an alliance between the ministries of SAOW, MEO, and VVRP along with contractor associations and contractors.
The goal must be to teach local youth in a relatively short time the different areas of work, such as block laying, mixing, carpentry, etc., in a practical ("hands-on") manner, while also doing so in the tourism sector.