Digital skills gaps could limit job opportunities, minister warns

Employers at medium and large firms estimate that 47 per cent of their employees lack at least some of the digital skills needed for their jobs, Labour Minister Colin Jordan has said, warning that adult literacy gaps could limit employment opportunities and participation in modern society.

Jordan told a forum on adult learning at The St Michael School on Wednesday that developing a national adult literacy policy is an opportunity to address the challenges facing adult learners and create pathways for personal and professional advancement.

He said: “Barbados has long been proud of its education system. We share a large number, a significant percentage, when we talk about it in terms of literacy. I think it helps us to feel good about ourselves. Tonight really is about facing the reality before us.”