(MissionNewswire) Salesian missionaries in Peru have worked to improve the standards for technical education and opportunities for youth around the country, and in particular, at the Salesian-run SALESTEC Institute. Each year Salesian missionaries hold a large education, technical and business Congress. In 2016, the 22nd Congress was attended by thousands of young people, all eager to learn about different companies in which they hope to find a job.

The Congress was attended by various companies in Peru that are working in strategic alliance with the Salesian Institute. Participants were able to receive information in the areas of electrical energy, electronics, production mechanics, car and motorcycle mechanics, welding and more. Companies had the opportunity to meet highly-trained youth between 18 to 35 years old who are ready to put the technical skills they learned at the Salesian Institute to work in real world environments.

Students attending the Congress were also able to highlight their expertise through showcasing different technical projects. One of those was the first integrated dual-spindle lathe prototype, a product of the Research, Development and Innovation Department of the Salesian Institute. Staff from the Institute provided the students technical expertise and support addressing the mechanical problems that arose in the project.

“The technical education provided at the Salesian Institute matches the skills needed at these companies in order to help youth make an easier transition from the classroom into stable, long-term employment,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Because Salesian missionaries live and work in the communities they serve, they are able to better understand the local economy and help create a bridge between companies seeking new highly-trained employees and youth seeking employment.”

This is particularly important given that there are 3.6 million Peruvians who are 12 to 18 years old who will one day need work. According to UNICEF, nearly 74 percent of these youth living in rural areas and 40 percent of those living in urban areas are living in conditions of poverty. Poverty in the country is made worse by a shortage of productive farmland and a lack of job skills among women entering the workforce, as well as a lack of adequate housing, nutrition and education.

Peru has also been plagued by hunger and disaster. According to the World Bank, close to 25 percent of children in the country are chronically malnourished. Communities continue to rebuild after an 8.0 earthquake in August 2007, which killed more than 500 people in the central coastal cities of Chincha, Pisco and Ica and injured hundreds more. The quake destroyed close to 60,000 residential and commercial buildings, leveled hundreds of acres of farmland and left countless Peruvians without means of livelihood.

Technical education provided at institutes like the Salesian Institute are a way to help ensure youth have the skills needed for employment. Currently, there are 400,000 technical education students gaining important skills for their futures and the future of the Peruvian workforce and economy.

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Sources:

ANS – Peru – Salesian Institute: Prototype CNC Project at the Twenty-second Congress of Education, Business and Technology

World Bank – Peru

Salesian Missions – Peru