Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

The mighty vocations

The mighty vocations

A workforce that possesses appropriate technical and vocational skills is critical for the Virgin Islands economy, and the welfare of the country’s youth It is a fact that the former UK colonies and Overseas Territories of the UK, owing to colonialism, culture, and history, have been overwhelmingly oriented towards the academics in learning.
The stress is on a theoretical, white-collar oriented, education model. The theory is perceived to be superior to practice. White-collar is better than blue-collar.

Society views the lawyer and office worker as socially more valuable than the carpenter and mason. The scientist is revered, the maritime technician, or electrician, not so much.

Families living in the former colonies value a medical doctor, son or daughter, over a child who trains to become a plumber or builder. This is a gross misconception, even deception, in work and career preference.

Believing the academics are superior to the vocations is a national ‘inferiority complex’ that is a great hindrance to developing a sustainable and resilient economy, especially in the British Commonwealth.

For example, the stress on developing a theoretical education model, over placing resources into developing the vocations, is at the root of economic underdevelopment in much of Sub Saharan Africa.

The lack of a vocationally trained and skilled workforce stifles productivity and drives unemployment. This belief that the academics are superior to the vocations is a derivative of the old UK colonial education model, where Harrow, Eton, Sandhurst, Oxford and Cambridge churned out a ruling class that governed an empire that at its height was even greater than the Roman Empire in landmass.

That theoretical education model is an anachronism. The overwhelming orientation towards the academics in learning is an idiosyncrasy that takes the oxygen away from vocational education, in a world that demands skill sets in science, technology, engineering and math, subjects that depend on the vocations to deliver sustainability, productivity and innovation to the market economy, and society.

That misplaced belief that the lawyer is superior to the hairdresser and chef, is one reason a country like the Virgin Islands finds itself dependent upon alien labour, while Virgin Islands youth walk the streets looking for white-collar employment, or migrate to the USA and UK where the experience of racial prejudice is a sad reality.

In the West African nation of Nigeria, that deception, that the academics are superior to the vocations – the learning of hands-on skills – is at the root of an education model that has failed the Nigerian economy and society. In Nigeria, post-independence, overdue stress on a white-collar university education has been to the country’s detriment. The acquisition of crucial vocational skills is lacking in Nigeria.

In fact it is not a stretch stating that the average Nigerian family would be ashamed if their child decided they wanted to learn plumbing, instead of engineering. But, vocational skills are very much needed to take the Nigerian economy to self- sufficiency, resiliency, and sustainability. But these skills are lacking in the job market owing to a false idea that a university education is superior to learning a skill at a centre of vocational excellence.

That Nigerian flawed education model is represented throughout the postcolonial Commonwealth. Countries such as Germany and Japan, with highly skilled labour forces, raise their economic productivity, driving greater GDP, and a higher standard of living.

For the Virgin Islands, an economy that will increasingly rely on ecotourism, food sufficiency, and an internal market dynamic, to drive economic and social development, the future employment of Virgin Islands youth will be in the vocations, over and above white-collar work in financial services, which in spite of it’s overwhelming contribution to the GDP, remains fragile, with an unpredictable future.

The vocations promise Virgin Islanders full employment and a prosperous future, if only the learning culture can see beyond the desktop, and air-condition office.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
×