HEART Trust marks World Youth Skills Day 2026 with regional drive for future-ready training

HEART/NSTA Trust is marking World Youth Skills Day 2026 under the theme Skills for a Shared Future, with Managing Director Dr. Taneisha Ingleton warning that the world of work has already shifted and that Jamaica’s young people must keep pace.

Ingleton said technology, artificial intelligence, sustainability and new patterns of employment are changing what skills matter. Technical ability, she argued, remains vital but cannot stand alone. Young people also need digital confidence, adaptability, creativity, emotional intelligence and the capacity to tackle practical problems.

That mix, she said, is what the Trust is training for. This year’s observance is being organised through a regional, institution-led approach spanning its six regions, so colleges and centres can mark the day in ways that fit trainees, local industry and surrounding communities.

The activities are meant to give young people room to take part, exchange ideas, sample future-facing skills and recognise their role in national development.

HEART/NSTA Trust is also using its Insights Accelerator to collect views from trainees, employers and other partners on which competencies will matter most, including artificial intelligence, sustainability, inclusion and lifelong learning.

Ingleton restated the agency’s pledge that no young person should be shut out of quality skills training — whether they are starting a programme, moving between jobs, launching a business or opening a fresh career path.

On World Youth Skills Day, she urged trainees and young Jamaicans to keep learning, keep innovating and keep preparing. The skills built now, she said, will help fashion a Jamaica that is stronger, more inclusive and more competitive.