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WorldSkills Jamaica National Skills Competition 2008.

A Reflection

The week April 20-25 was dubbed National Skills Week by WorldSkills Jamaica, and what a week it was. It started on a spiritual footing with a church service at the New Testament Church of God in Mandeville on April 20, 2008.The young pastor who incidentally is a graduate of HEART /NTA delivered a powerful sermon which not only inspired the entire congregation present, but set an excellent tone for the week ahead.

The week culminated on April 24- 25 2008 with the National Skills Competition being held under the theme "Celebrate Skills, Discover you Potential.' The competition which is the third annual staging, saw over five hundred competitors from eighty-two institutions across Jamaica showcasing their skills in 47 skill areas. In addition there were three hundred experts and two hundred volunteers facilitating the successful staging of this WorldSkills Jamaica signature event.

The competition was prefaced on April 23, 2008 with a gala opening ceremony at the National Indoor Centre in Kingston. The Governor General of Jamaica The Hon. Sir Kenneth Hall who was the official patron of the event, declared the competition opened to over five thousand persons who started entering the venue as early as 4:30pm for the scheduled start time of 6:00pm.The Governor General in his presentation lauded the WorldSkills Jamaica team for hosting the third National Skills Competition and encouraged those present to play their role in placing Vocational Skills on the National agenda.

Several other dignitaries were in attendance at the Opening Ceremony including Ministers of Government, representatives from WorldSkills Calgary, Trinidad, Caricom, industry partners, members of the Board of HEART Trust NTA and key stakeholders in education and training. The ceremony had a combination of thought provoking speeches and excellent entertainment from some of Jamaica's top entertainers.

The enthusiasm demonstrated by the competitors, judges and volunteers at the opening ceremony was also evident on the competition days. The competition which was held on April 24-25 2008 was held at the National Arena in Kingston. Over twenty thousand persons visited the competition over the two day period. The fact that so many persons turn up is one of the success indicators of the National Skills Competition.

Thousands of students from several institutions across Jamaica viewed the competition. They were all exposed to the different career options that exist within vocational training. They were allowed the opportunity to "try a skill" and sign up for training programmes within HEART/ NTA.

On the evening of April 25, 2008 the Prime Minister the Hon. Bruce Golding gave the keynote address to a packed National Indoor Centre at the closing ceremony. In his address he emphasized the significant contribution skills make to National Development. The closing ceremony was filled with excitement as excellence was celebrated. The top competitors were issued with their medals. Vincent Barnett a competitor in IT PC Support got the highest score overall. The evening ended on a high with a symbolic handing over of flags. The WorldSkills Calgary flag was handed over to Mr. Guy Mallabone from WorldSkills Calgary 2009. Mr. Kevin Mullings also received a flag for the WorldSkills General Assembly in 2010 and Mr. Simon Bartley received a flag for WorldSkills London 2011.The three gentlemen waved their flags to thunderous applause from the audience.Mr. Bartley and Mr. Mallabone also received certificates of WorldSkills Jamaica's commitment to the sustainability of WorldSkills International. The presentations were made by Mr. Donald Foster, the Executive Director of HEART/ Trust NTA.