-DATE-
19870131
-YEAR-
1987
-DOCUMENT_TYPE-
MEETING
-AUTHOR-
F. CASTRO
-HEADLINE-
ANNUAL MEETING OF MINBAS OFFICIALS
-PLACE-
HAVANA
-SOURCE-
TELEVISION SERVICE
-REPORT_NBR-
FBIS
-REPORT_DATE-
19870131
-TEXT-
REPORTAGE ON ANNUAL MEETING OF MINBAS OFFICIALS

Castro Eyes Training Needs

FL310209 Havana Television Service in Spanish 0100 GMT 21 Jan 87

[Text] Commander in Chief Fidel Castro, president of the Councils of State
and Ministers, this afternoon presided over the annual meeting of Basic
Industry Ministry [Minbas] directors in which the work performed by the
Minbas during 1986 and the work objectives for this year were analyzed.

[Video shows Castro seated at a table talking to representatives attending
the meeting] [Castro] Have you thought about the number of technicians you
will need on the year 2000?

[Basic Industry Minister Marcos Portal, identified by caption] We have
thought about the ones we will need around 1995.

[Castro] How may would you need in 1995?

[Portal interrupts] No commander. No, I would like to tell you that with
the narrow profile...

[Castro] That narrow profile...

[Portal interrupts] That is with the wide profile, the more versatile
mechanical engineer, chemical engineer will make possible their placement
in more work posts.

[Castro] More flexible.

[Portal] More flexible.

[Castro] Of course. I have favored that from the beginning, I prefer to
have a technician with an extensive background and have him specialize
later after he works in the field. After he learns a lot about computers
and other basic areas. I always use physicians as an example. A physician
graduates after 6 years of training. During those 6 years he obtains basic
skills and has the basics or some in-depth knowledge of the fundamental
areas of medicine.

In the same way physicians specialize, [rephrases] not at the university,
universities do not train specialists. No physician leaves the university
as a specialist. He leaves as a physician. It is later in the hospital were
he conducts his residency.

There could be many other specialists. I admit 100, not only 30 but 150 but
with men who have extensive and deep knowledge. After he is no longer
needed he can be transferred because one of the characteristics of the
modern world and one of the needs is constant recycling. In modern
industries people are constantly being retrained. So what we need are men
with wide profiles. That is why the matter of wide profiles is so
important. I wish we could be told we have 15,000 men with fairly wide
profiles. We cannot do that in a hurry, we have to study it but we should
do it as soon as possible. We need to start eliminating those excessive
profiles. It is ridiculous, that is the truth. It is unnecessary, it is
negative. We need grade school, secondary school, pre-university, and
university-level people with a wide range of knowledge.
-END-