21 August 2023
"As the world changes, so does the need for certain jobs. A look through history shows the evolution of the workforce, from manual labour to factory work to a more modern system that puts a priority on digital industries. While nothing is certain about the future, we can look forward and make some educated guesses about what the job market may look like years from now."
The above paragraph is a quote from one of today's mainstream publications, but reading it I believe it has relevance to the Solomon Islands and I wonder just what is being done in the field of education, industry and the workplace to ensure the people of Solomon Islands will have paid jobs in tomorrow's world.
Employment for young people in the SI is hard enough already and many have had to leave home and family to get paid work as seasonal workers overseas, but very many more are still jobless without proper education and job skills.
The question is simple enough for me to pose but just how will the government, and succeeding governments, meet the challenges posed by the questions of a digital future to ensure the employment and wellbeing of all its people, already exceeding 700,000 and growing year on year given the high birth rate?
Yours sincerely
Frank Short
