Filling up the 40 percent quota for Bhutanese job-seekers
Hydropower Projects 5 March, 2010 - The construction of two more hydropower projects, scheduled to begin this year, will create more than 7,000 new jobs in 2010, according to a preliminary study carried out by water and power consultancy services ltd., India, (WAPCOS).
Of the total 6,094 are in the construction sector and 580 in the management category. In the construction sector, 2,507 skilled and 3,587 unskilled workers are required.
The construction of the 1,200 MW Punatsangchhu I is already underway and the construction of the 990 MW Punatsangchhu II and 720 MW Mangdechhu are to begin this year.
Although no details were available on how many slots will be filled by Bhutanese, labour ministry officials said they will try to fulfill a 40-60 model. This means 40 percent of the available jobs will go to Bhutanese, with the rest taken up by international workers.
Despite Bhutanese being reluctant to take up blue-collar jobs, especially in the unskilled category, the labour officials said that they would try to achieve this ratio this year.
Currently, 1,800 Bhutanese are employed by the Punatsangchhu (I) hydroelectric project authority, which equals to 36 percent of the total workforce. Labour director, Jamyang Geley, said that by 2010, “we expect to reach this 60-40 ratio, if not more, and maintain it.”
But to achieve such aims, Bhutan will need more skilled workers willing to do manual work. In July, last year, Indian companies involved in the construction of the Punatsangchhu I dam, agreed to prioritise employing more Bhutanese, but only after they upgraded or acquired the necessary skills.
Jamyang Geley said the ministry is working towards this objective. He pointed out that “various programs” are already in place to increase the level of skills required by the hydroelectric projects. These include improving the existing capacities of the six vocational training institutes (VTIs), providing training opportunities abroad, and apprenticeships with the companies already involved in construction.
The labour director added that, by 2013, the country’s VTIs would have produced 50,000 graduates. Currently, 1,085 students are registered in the six VTIs and two zorig chusums.
He said that this would mean the labour ministry would be able to achieve the target of providing enough skilled labour to achieve the 60-40 model. The WAPCOS study shows that, by 2013, 59,932 workers will be required. Construction activities will peak with a total employment at 62,309 in 2014, which will then level off at 5,176 in 2023, says the study.
The study also points out that several other employment opportunities will be generated indirectly, such as in the service, manufacturing, and mining sectors that will result from the hydroelectric projects. It also says that the hydroelectric projects will necessitate the establishment or extension and upgradation of the social services or government sector in the construction areas.
The government plans to produce more than 10,000 MW by 2020 through the construction of 10 hydroelectric projects, in addition to Chukha and Tala.
Source: kuenselonline.com |
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