It is in the young people of Bermuda who are the Island?s true wealth and resource and it is only by investing in them through educating and training that the Island can provide economic empowerment to its people.

That was the message delivered by former Jamaican Prime Minister Percival James Patterson, guest speaker at the 39th PLP Annual Conference Banquet at the Fairmont Southampton.

Having just completed an unbroken 18 years as leader of Jamaica Mr. Patterson spoke on the top of economic empowerment. and first touched up the need in a post 9/11 world to diversify economies beyond the vulnerable areas of off-shore banking and tourism and create other economic pillars.

?The key lies in the building of our human capital. Neither Bermuda nor the nations in the Caribbean have the capacity to compete with the developed countries in the trading of goods,? he said.

?We must all capitalise on the blessings of nature, geography and of our innate creative talents. We have no other option but to concentrate on the accumulation of our human capital in order to become competitive in the export of knowledge-based and professional services. ?We have to go for broke on education and skills training.?

Mr. Patterson said knowledge-based services now account for 50 percent of the value of global trade. He went on to say Bermuda and Caribbean countries need to educate their young people to a level where they can run sophisticated operations and utilise the latest technologies.

?In order to bring our education systems in line with these requirements.?

He said there was a need for new and improved educational equipment and more highly trained teachers at all levels and for computer studies to be a basic within the educational curriculum.

?Too few of the labour force in the region have been exposed to formal technical and vocational subjects. In all this our goal is to build a society, emanating from slavery, with a greater sense of self-esteem. Where we are each prepared to accept a greater sense of individual responsibility and fashion that mould that allows each man, woman and child to realise his or her full potential.?

During his time as Jamaica?s leader between 1992 and 2006 his nation chaired the UN security council. Mr. Patterson has also chaired the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Group of 15 and the Group of 77 and China.

He said he had followed the PLP leadership contest through the Internet before coming to the Island for the banquet and had wondered if he would be addressing an empty room or an overflowing one. It turned out to be the later as more than 500 Party faithful were in attendance.

And he touched on party unity, recognising the fissures that can be caused by leadership struggles. Mr. Patterson received applause as he repeated something he said at his previous PLP banquet appearance in 1999: ?Do not become your own opposition.?