15 job service officers from Salesian vocational training centers in the Africa-Madagascar Region complete training on issues related to employment

(MissionNewswire) Fifteen job service officers from Salesian vocational training centers in the Africa-Madagascar Region completed a one-week training workshop conducted by staff of the Catholic Institute of Education. The seminar was promoted by Don Bosco Tech Africa and held at Don Bosco Youth Educational Services in Nairobi, Kenya.

The seminar’s objective is to equip job service officers with the knowledge and skills necessary to help youth achieve a better quality of life through employment. The seminar included lectures, practical sessions, group discussions and group projects. At the end, participants received certificates.

In the opening speech of the workshop, Father TJ George, executive director of Don Bosco Tech Africa, thanked the participants for their dedication. The first part of the seminar had been held in June 2019 in Lagos, Nigeria, with the second part planned for 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the second part was rescheduled. Fr. George was pleased to see that even though considerable time had passed many of the participants had returned for the training.

An earlier job market survey noted life skills training played an important role in helping youth to find and retain stable employment. John Njuguna, deputy director of Don Bosco Tech Africa, said, “Life skills are generally applied in the context of personal and community development. The graduates of Salesian technical and vocational centers are generally appreciated more for their technical skills and for the life skills with which they enter the labor market.”

Innocent Mutala, a job service officer from Uganda, said participants appreciated the introduction of new topics. These included gender-based violence, the pandemic, the protection of personal information, and the methodology and technique of conducting a training seminar.

Despite the steady growth of Kenya’s economy, more than half of the country’s population lives below the poverty line on less than $1 a day, according to UNICEF. UNICEF also noted that Nairobi is home to 3 million residents, most of whom endure lives of extreme poverty in the city’s slums. The most vulnerable are families and children who live in these urban slums and in areas of the country most affected by HIV/AIDS. Many do not have access to health care, nutrition, sanitation or education.

Youth living in Nairobi’s slums are at risk for exploitation, forced labor and other abuses. Few attend the later stages of school as compared to those living in Kenya’s more rural areas. The few schools serving this disadvantaged community are beyond the financial means of most families. UNICEF noted that while Kenya has free and compulsory education, youth in poverty still cannot afford to attend school. Close to 90 percent of children from poor households fail to complete their basic education.

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Sources:

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS) 

ANS – Kenya – Formation seminar promoted by DBTA

Don Bosco Tech Africa

Don Bosco Tech Africa Facebook

Salesian Missions – Kenya

UNICEF – Kenya Statistics