In a report commissioned by the CDB dating back to 2015, the organisation urged countries in the region to invest more heavily in TVET, especially for young and at-risk populations.

“TVET is changing globally with skilled trades-people in high demand worldwide. The highly successful individuals who are, and will be, in demand are not merely being trained in a specific skill set. They are educated people with a strong foundation in transferrable competencies that afford them the ability to adapt and change based on the landscape of challenges they face,” the report revealed.

In Saint Lucia, the government is working on transforming four secondary schools into TVET institutions. It is hoped that this transition will facilitate easier access to TVET learning outside of the country’s two main skills development centres - the Centre for Adolescent Rehabilitation and Education (CARE) and the National Skills Development Centre (NSDC).

“[There will be] a series of town hall meetings regarding the transformation of the Anse Ger Secondary School, Grande Riviere Secondary School, Piaye Secondary School and the Stanley Jon Odlum Memorial Secondary into TVET-Focused Schools,” a Ministry of Education release stated on November 9, 2023. The release added that this move by the Ministry is in response to “the emerging needs for technical and vocational expertise in the labour market.”

The CDB has also encouraged TVET lending for Borrowing Member Countries. As recently as August 2023, the CDB lent USD 4.7 million to the government of the Bahamas to help fund the Bahamian Technical and Vocational Institute.