200 persons apply for map reading, navigation short course

OVER 150 persons have applied for the map reading and navigation short course that is being facilitated by the Guyana Mining School and Training Centre Inc. (GMSTCI).

The course was expected to come on stream in March, however, due to the significant number of applications that were received, it was brought forward to this month.

Persons on Monday began classes at the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) building on Croal Street.

The Administrator of the Guyana Mining School Vaughn Felix made the disclosure in an invited comment to the Department of Public Information (DPI) on Monday.

“We have received approximately 200 applications, so that is why we are bringing forward the course. Right now, we’re doing the Guyana Police Force, we’re doing wildlife, we’re doing Bureau of Statistics, we’re doing NDMA, and one and two miners are in the class,” he disclosed.

The primary objective of the course is to equip miners and other interested stakeholders with the skills and knowledge necessary to navigate difficult terrain, and read maps effectively.

Trainees, upon completion of the course, will have a comprehensive understanding of the mining sector, as they would have undergone both practical and theoretical training.

Concerning engagements on specific issues with the relevant authorities, he said that at the end of 2021, they were meeting with several sectoral ministers, along with the Minister of Governance and Parliamentary Affairs, Gail Teixeira.

about their sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics, the same way their race and other information are collected.

from a policy and a legal perspective.”

Additionally, the overall scores for the other aspects of LGBTI inclusion are political and civic participation, 0.426; economic well-being, 0.11; and health, 0.67.

Moreover, Simpson related that the pilot study is very important because it gives them a baseline and quantitative measure when it comes to the issue of LGBTI inclusion.

“All the research that previously existed on this issue is very qualitative in nature, which is good, which is important, but I think a quantitative methodology like this gives us a baseline to be able to measure where we go from here,” he noted.

Ongoing Conversations

“That was a very fruitful discussion on the issue of the Prevention of Discrimination Act 1997. We discussed what would be an appropriate strategy for advancing an amendment to that legislation,” he explained.

Further, he shared that they met with the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and have been trying to continue said engagements.

Simpson noted that two key sectoral ministers whom they would need to have direct one-on-one engagements with, in 2023, are the Minister of Labour, Joseph Hamilton for the amending of the Prevention of Discrimination Act 1997 as well as the Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Dr. Vindhya Persaud.

He also said that they will be sharing the report with the government, to give them a comprehensive overview and fact-based research which they can use as a baseline as well.

He added that the 2032 census should ask people

A few recommendations to improve LGBTI inclusion in Guyana are to amend the legal framework to prohibit sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC)-related discrimination against students in educational settings and instituting concrete mechanisms for reporting cases of SOGIESC-related discrimination, violence, and bullying towards students, including incidents perpetrated by representatives of the education sector.

Some further recommendations are the decriminalisation of private consensual same-sex activity between adults.

“This recommendation relates specifically to gross indecency in Section 351 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Cap. 8:01; and attempted buggery and buggery in Sections 352 and 353 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Cap. 8:01, respectively,” the report stated.

Others include the overhauling and modernising of the pension system to provide the same benefits to same-sex partners as provided to different-sex spouses.