S5 students not accepted by professional centres learn about other options on offer |12 February 2020

Ms Assary addressing the gathering at yesterday’s meeting (Photo: Jude Morel)

The Ministry of Employment is currently holding a series of meetings with all students who completed S5 in 2019 but who have not been selected to pursue their studies in a professional centre.

A meeting was held yesterday at the ICCS and many students were accompanied by their parents.

Sabrina Assary, senior officer dealing with the pre-vocational section and her team of five other officers, were on hand to explain to the students and the parents about the Skills Development Programme.

“The aim of the programme is to train young jobseekers who leave schools at S2, S3 and S5 and who are having difficulties to secure employment. The programme retrains them in new areas so as to reduce the skills gap with the view of enabling them to enter the labour market. The programme combines on-the-job and off-the-job training for a period of 6 to 18 months resulting in trainees gaining a certificate. Most of them are absorbed into full employment upon successful completion of the programme,” noted Ms Assary.

After the meeting, the students have the opportunity to register themselves for the Skills Development Programme. They need to bring along their identity card, their curriculum vitae, their reference or S5 certificate, their IGCSE results, a passport photo and details of the bank account of the student or the parents.

Yesterday morning and afternoon, the students of Ile Perseverance, English River, Belonie and Beau Vallon had the opportunity to learn about the various possibilities of work.

Today as of 9am, the Ministry of Employment will guide the students of Mont Fleuri and Plaisance schools at the ICCS. And tomorrow as from 9am at the community centre of Anse Royale, all students from Pointe Larue, Anse Royale and Anse Boileau will be catered for.

The students of Praslin will have a session on Wednesday February 19 in the conference hall at the Pension Fund Building, Grand Anse, and at 1pm the same day the officers of the Ministry of Employment will meet the students of La Digue at the Employment Bureau on La Digue.

Vidya Gappy