The $2 million Aquaculture Centre for Excellence at Whitsunday TAFE has been officially opened.
The facility is state-of-the-art and is set to offer a variety of certificate qualifications to support the aquaculture industry, including fish farming, hatchery, and pond management.
Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Furner attended the official opening and said: “It was fantastic to be on site to officially open the TAFE Aquaculture Centre of Excellence in Airlie Beach.”
“This is such an exciting opportunity for young people to launch their careers in aquaculture or for other students to change their careers completely. This state-of-the-art centre will keep us on track to meet our growing workforce needs and will see the industry continue to make a significant and positive contribution to regional development,” Mr Furner MP said.
“I look forward to seeing the region continue to grow thanks to exciting and emerging industries such as aquaculture.”
The Centre has already begun training, with students enrolling in Aquaculture Essentials Program, Aquatic Technologies Skill Set and Certificate II in Aquaculture.
Minister for Training and Skills Development Di Farmer said the high-quality facilities at the Aquaculture Centre of Excellence are matched with high-quality training and TAFE Queensland will offer a variety of skill sets and qualifications.
“The Good people. Good jobs. Queensland Workforce Strategy 2022-2032 aims to create a skilled workforce ready to seize today’s jobs and embrace new opportunities.
“The Aquaculture Centre of Excellence at Whitsunday is doing just that for this exciting and fast-growing industry.”
“The Aquaculture Centre of Excellence is great news for students and a highly skilled workforce is great news for local employers and for our region,” said Member for Mackay Julieanne Gilbert MP.
“This upgrade is the latest investment in TAFE facilities across the region, and includes the $3.4 million Agriculture Centre of Excellence, a $200,000 collaborative learning centre at the Bowen TAFE campus and a $250,000 collaborative learning centre here at Whitsunday.”
The official opening of the new Aquaculture Centre for Excellence at Whitsunday TAFE set an exciting precedent for students. Photo supplied
