In an op-ed published in the Kaieteur News on March 22, 2026, Abrams, Founder and Executive Director of STEMGuyana, framed the issue in stark terms:
“Are we preparing Guyanese children for the jobs of 2035, or are we still educating too many of them for the jobs of 1985?”
Her intervention comes at a time when Guyana’s transformation is visible in physical infrastructure and investment flows, but she cautions that the national conversation has glossed over a more difficult reality.
“We speak confidently about transformation, prosperity, and opportunity. We talk about the future as if it has already arrived. But there is a harder question we must be willing to ask.”
At the centre of Abrams’ argument is what she describes as a long-standing and unresolved “massive literacy and numeracy crisis.” Drawing on World Bank data, she noted that only 14 percent of Grade Two students met the required standards in literacy and numeracy as far back as 2016, with nearly half performing below expectations.
“In plain language, too many children are falling behind at the very stage when they should be learning to read with confidence and use numbers with ease.”
She argues that this foundational weakness is not an isolated education issue but a direct threat to the country’s future workforce, particularly as Guyana positions itself within a technology-driven global economy.
“Children who cannot read well will not be able to take advantage of STEM investments, no matter how generous those investments may be.”
While acknowledging the expansion of STEM initiatives — from robotics programmes to coding camps — Abrams cautions that such efforts risk becoming symbolic if basic competencies remain weak.
“We can build beautiful labs. We can donate tablets. We can fund robotics clubs. We can launch coding camps and celebrate innovation. All of that is good, and all of that matters.”
But, she adds:
“If a child struggles to read instructions, interpret a word problem, follow a sequence, write a response, or make sense of basic information, that child will remain locked out of the very opportunities we claim to be creating.”
In that context, she rejects any attempt to treat literacy and numeracy as separate from innovation.
“Literacy is not separate from STEM. Numeracy is not separate from innovation. They are the doorway into it.”
Abrams also turns her attention to the private sector, questioning what she sees as a lack of urgency from businesses operating in an oil-fuelled economy.
“That is why I do not understand why in our oil producing economy, our organization is not overwhelmed with offers of support from Guyana’s private sector to support learning pods in vulnerable communities across the country.”
Beyond resources, she points to deeper systemic issues, arguing that aspects of the education system remain misaligned with the demands of a modern workforce.
“Too many of our systems still reward children for passivity rather than initiative, recall rather than reasoning, and quiet compliance rather than curiosity.”
This, she notes, is fundamentally incompatible with the skills required in a future shaped by technology and artificial intelligence.
“The jobs our children will face in 2035 will require stronger thinking skills, stronger communication skills, and stronger technical confidence than ever before.”
While Abrams acknowledges efforts by the Ministry of Education Guyana — including curriculum reforms and expanded learning resources — she insists that incremental progress will not be enough.
“That work deserves recognition. But the scale of the problem tells us that recognition alone is not enough.”
Instead, she calls for a coordinated national response that extends beyond schools to include parents, communities, policymakers and the private sector.
“If foundational learning remains weak, then the promise of national development will remain uneven.”
Her focus is particularly sharp when addressing inequality, noting that children from disadvantaged backgrounds are most at risk.
“Those are the children in ordinary homes, in struggling communities… Those are the children for whom school must work.”
Failure at this stage, she cautions, carries lifelong consequences.
“If we fail them early, we do not merely create academic weakness. We create future exclusion.”
In closing, Abrams urges that foundational learning be treated with the same urgency as infrastructure and economic growth, reminding policymakers that development is ultimately about people, not projects.
“Because roads do not read, buildings do not calculate. Economies do not become inclusive by accident. People do. Children do but only if we prepare them.”
With Guyana building at record pace, Abrams’ argument cuts to a stark reality: a nation cannot outgrow the capacity of its people. If foundational learning continues to lag, the gleaming promise of development will rest on an uneven base—one where opportunity expands, but access does not. The question, she suggests, is no longer whether Guyana is growing, but who will truly be equipped to grow with it.
