KINGSTON, Jamaica — Starting in 2020, international skills development organisation, City & Guilds will be providing digital certificates to Jamaican students, upon the successful completion of their programmes.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Dr Grace McLean made the announcement at a function held recently at the Terra Nova Hotel in Kingston.

She said the introduction of the digital certificate, will cut cost, as well as assist “greatly with the portability of the certificate for our young people”.

“As of next year, City & Guilds will be providing a digital certificate for each student. What that means is that each student will be able to access it anywhere, anytime on their mobile phones,” McLean said.

The Permanent Secretary said that the digital certificate will be placed in a database that will allow employers to access the profile of the students.

Meanwhile, Managing Director, Skills Credentialing, City and Guilds Group, Kirstie Donnelly commended the Ministry for its foresight in embracing this innovative technology.

“The Ministry should be applauded for how much you have embraced digital credentials as the future, as the way forward,” she stated.

Pointing out that learning and career advancement is a lifelong process, Donnelly said education ministries must keep up with the changing needs of students, to ensure they are equipped to meet the demands of the labour market.

“Learning will change, career pathways and progression pathways will change and we need to be flexible to help support that change. Thank you for being so innovative in your use of digital credentials so much so that next year, I believe you will be issuing something in the region of 50,000 digital badges and that will be the first for us,” she said.

Between 2011 and 2019, City & Guilds awarded 96,000 certificates to Jamaican students in Mathematics and English.

The organisation has also awarded 3,300 digital badges for its Customer Service qualification for young people pursuing careers in the global services sector.

Founded more than 140 years ago, City & Guilds is one of the most widely recognised skills development businesses in the world.