(MissionNewswire) Yamaha Motor Pvt. Ltd. has expanded its partnership with Salesian missionaries in India by opening another Yamaha Training School located at Don Bosco Polytechnic in the town of Thirukkazhukundram, which is in the Kancheepuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. This training center joins the others currently in operation at Salesian schools across India. Current programs are located at the Don Bosco Technical Campus in Chennai, the Bosco Boys Welfare Society in Borivali West, Don Bosco Technical School Maligaon in Guwahati and at the Don Bosco Technical School in Kolkata.

The Yamaha Training Centers follow the Yamaha Technical Academy’s training program which was developed in India in 2002 based upon Japan’s formal Yamaha technician training curriculum. The academy coursework provides comprehensive technical education and expertise from the Yamaha factory with hands-on diagnostic and troubleshooting skills training.

There are four levels of certificate courses, each lasting one year, that make up the Indian training centers’ curriculum and each class can take up to 30 students. The entry level course prepares students for work at an assistant’s level while the highest level course prepares students for supervisory work. Each student has the opportunity to access all four training levels and can choose to graduate at whichever level he or she is most interested in or qualified for. Most graduates go on to find work in Yamaha dealerships.

The goal of the training centers is to offer expanded skills training to poor youth across India. According to the International Labor Organization’s Global Employment Trends 2014 Report, the unemployment rate in India has been gradually increasing since 2011 when the rate was at 3.5 percent. The rate rose to 3.6 percent in 2012 and again climbed in 2013 to 3.7 percent. The unemployment rate was expected to continue to grow throughout 2014, according to the report.

“The existing skills gap in the industry can be reduced by imparting technical training to younger generations, as India is on its way to becoming an economic powerhouse. Yamaha as a brand is catering to youngsters and has addressed the matter with responsibility,” said Masaki Asano, managing director of Yamaha Motor India Sales Pvt. Ltd. in a News Today article about the new center.

To help prepare students for the workforce, Don Bosco technical schools offer résumé writing assistance, interview skills training and other social development services in addition to the courses that are part of the Yamaha Training Center program.

“A memorandum of understanding with Don Bosco Polytechnic was signed in order to develop a synergetic partnership and thereby provide education to deserving students to help them find employment in the automobile sector after the technical training course,” explained Ravinder Singh, vice president of strategy and planning at Yamaha Motor India Sales Pvt. Ltd. “Last year, Yamaha also signed a memorandum of understanding with India’s Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, under which certification will be provided by the National Council of Vocational Training. This provides the national recognition for such endeavors and are in sync with the national agendas like Skill India and Make in India.”

With more than 1.2 billion people, India has the world’s fourth largest economy and according to UNICEF, is home to one-third of the world’s poor. Close to 217 million of India’s poor are children. Although more than 53 million people escaped poverty between 2005 and 2010, most remain vulnerable to falling back below the poverty line.

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

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Sources:

PHOTO courtesy of Don Bosco Polytechnic – Thirukkazhukundram

International Labour Organization – Global Employment Trends 2014 Report

News Today – Yamaha inaugurates training school

Don Bosco Polytechnic – Thirukkazhukundram

UNICEF – India

Yamaha Technical Academy India