Half of youth in attendance selected for positions throughout India

(MissionNewswire) Two Salesian organizations, AIDA-Don Bosco, a job placement network in Dimapur, India and Konkan Development Society, the Don Bosco Vocational Guidance and Placement Service in Curtorim, recently held job events to help Salesian students find long term employment and be ready for the workforce.

Supported by the Don Bosco Job Placement Network, AIDA-Don Bosco organized the first ever job fair at Don Bosco College in Maram, India. The event was well received with many youth taking part in interviews and in talks with the five companies in attendance. By the end of the event, half of the youth had already been selected for positions throughout India, marking a promising start for regional employment initiatives.

Father Roy George, executive director of AIDA-Don Bosco expressed his enthusiasm for the event, congratulating the organizers and calling this collaboration “an important step towards realizing the professional aspirations of young people.”

The Konkan Development Society the Don Bosco Vocational Guidance and Placement Service, in collaboration with Reginaldo Lourenco, a member of the Legislative Assembly, organized a career guidance workshop for more than100 students and some parents. The event emphasized the crucial role of family support in shaping career decisions.

A workshop included dynamic sessions led by renowned experts, who offered students a holistic perspective on education and career paths. Noah Rodrigues, regional coordinator of the Don Bosco Job Placement Network, opened the workshop with a session with a talk about choosing the right career path. He guided the students through a self-assessment tool.

In another session Colonel Jesus Benino Furtardo spoke to the students about the possibility of working in the army and how to evaluate different careers after the end of their studies.

“Learning the skills for employment is only half the process,” said a Salesian. “We want to make sure youth are able to take the skills they learned and access the employment that will allow them to be self-sufficient. Events like these are a step in ensuring that’s possible.”

Access to professional training and workforce development services is highly valued in India. India’s youth face a lack of educational opportunities due to issues of caste, class and gender. Almost 44% of the workforce is illiterate and less than 10% of the working-age population has completed a secondary education. In addition, many secondary school graduates do not have the knowledge and skills to compete in today’s changing job market.

India has the world’s fourth largest economy but more than 22% of the country lives in poverty. About 31% of the world’s multidimensionally poor children live in India, according to a report by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative.

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ANS – India – Big job fair at Don Bosco College in Maram

ANS – India – An orientation workshop to help young people make informed career choices

Salesian Missions – India

World Bank – India