Dear Editor,

There is a renewed call for the government to find ways to assist school leavers, especially at the tertiary level, to find work. It is a fact that some of our graduates are finding it difficult to get work and that comes with a lot of frustration, and finding the money to pay back student loans is not the least of these frustrations.

The call for the Government of the day to actually employ or put money in the pockets of these graduates is not a feasible option at this time when as a country we can hardly meet the day-to-day expenses necessary to provide other important services of government. We must, therefore, find other innovative ways to deal with this mushrooming problem.

It is not practical to ask the private sector to employ more people than it really needs, and any CEO who attempts to do this would lose the confidence of his shareholders. So, what are the alternatives?

My recommendation is to seek opportunities outside of Jamaica and the farm work programme provides an excellent template to examine and on which to develop. Jamaica has earned the respect and the admiration of many countries around the world. There are 195 other countries in the world today. Of this number, I cannot think of a single country that dislikes us for political or other reasons; we are a “no problem” country — we are “irie“.

It is also a fact that our educational system is good and compares well with even First-World institutions.

What if our country approaches each one of the nearly 200 countries with which we have good relations and work out an arrangement to allow a maximum of 100 tertiary level students to work in their country for a five-year period under some special governmental arrangement that will actually benefit the host country? I am not advocating any minimum wage arrangement; the level that should be targeted first is tertiary level graduates at various stages of their professional development depending, of course, on the availability and the need.

This is not a programme through which we are begging anything, we are actually entering into a negotiation with the host country to get the benefit of the skills that our students can offer.We have an abundance of nurses, doctors, accountants, teachers to name a few professions that could benefit from this arrangement.

What I am suggesting is not different from what private individuals do routinely, ie seek employment in a foreign country, apply for a visa, and then work for a fair wage up to the approved length of his visa. The difference here is that the Government should be able to do this quicker than the single individual. In other words, the Government would be the facilitator. This proposal is not one that needs any great analysis, it is a practical, straightforward idea that can be implemented immediately. It is a proactive approach to assist Jamaicans to gain employment and better their lives. After all, isn’t that the role of government?

Carlton Fearon

Mandeville, Manchester

clarendonlube@yahoo.com