Some students and school dropouts lack support and programs to study trade-related courses or participate in short-term training.
This is one of the concerns raised by the students of Suva Grammar School this morning during the National Development Plan consultation at their school.
Students say that because of this issue, there is a shortage in many trade-related fields, such as blocklayeres, carpenters, barbers, and chefs.
They asked about the government's plans to ensure that the issue of brain drain is addressed in the future.
Some students also highlighted the issue of traffic congestion, which is a factor that leads to late arrivals at various schools because of which students miss out on their classes even when they leave home early.
Ministry of Finance Senior Economist Kamal Gounder says the government is allocating funds for vocational centers so that people can join short-term and long-term courses of their choice.
Gounder says traffic congestion can be addressed if the carpooling concept can be utilized within families, friends, and colleagues; this means fewer cars on the roads.
Other issues discussed by the students were a lack of text books, school furniture, and the need to have more school counselors.
Meanwhile, Goundar says that as of 10th of March, they consulted 11,189 people for the National Development Plan.
He adds some of the priority areas they are looking at involves education, health, infrastructure, electricity services, housing needs and others.
Public consultations will continue this week in the Central, Northern, and the Eastern Division.
