BY DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

FREEPORT – Maurice Moore believes the Bahamas has not done enough in the area of training, and said both the PLP and FNM governments could have done more.

The former MP said the lack of employment and training of young people has led to a serious crime problem that must be addressed before it is too late.

“We need to do a lot of work in the areas of training and the creation of jobs for our people,” said the former minister of labour and training. “We fell down on that, and we are paying for it today in a big way.”

Mr Moore, who turns 74 this year, says he still feels young at heart, and is ready, willing, and able to assist in whatever way he can in the further development of the country.

The former cabinet minister in the FNM government pointed out that the training of citizens is paramount.

He is extremely concerned about the lack of training available to Bahamians ahead of the thousands of jobs that are expected to come on stream at Baha Mar in New Providence.

“What bothers me more than anything else is the lack of co-ordinated training for our citizens, so that young men and women can rightly take their places in the development of this country.

“We are not going in that direction right now; we need to give them a clear direction, and we need to do it now before it is too late,” said Mr Moore.

During his time in office, Mr Moore said, he was able to lay the groundwork for changes to the Labour Act that resulted in many benefits for Bahamian workers.

“I am happy because the Bahamian people are benefiting from it, but there are two aspects of it that still gives me grave concern. One of them is the plan for the training for our Bahamian people. When you are developing an economy, you have to take into consideration your education program so it fits into where you are directing your economy,” he said.

He stated that if the economy is a mixture of tourism and industry, then efforts must be taken to train and better prepare workers in those sectors.

“I am happy to say that during my time as minister responsible for training, we established the Hotel Training College. Our economy at that time was basically geared toward the development of tourism,” he said.

Mr Moore also recalled the renaming of the training centre on Soldier Road to the Industrial Training Centre.

“To a lesser degree we were dealing with industry at the time. And while we did put some money and effort expanding the Industrial Training Centre, greater potential was put into the HTC.

“I am not pleased at all with the effort, even with my own government, the FNM. While we did a lot, I still feel we could have done more. We must grab hold of the young people... and direct their training so it can complement and supply the workforce for the direction of our economy.

“Here is one classic example that gives me concern. Baha Mar made known to the government two years ago that they will make the Bahamas the Mecca for tourism and gambling in this part of the world, and I have not seen any real steps taken to prepare for the 7,000 to 8,000 workers in all areas of the hospitality and gambling industry.

“The first mention about it was in this last budget communication.

“Those are the things that worry me. You worry about crime; you get the man off the street and in a job, then he will not have time to go around stealing somebody else’s things.

“So, it is a serious matter we must address, and we must address it now, otherwise our young people will do what they feel like doing, which may not be the best.”