145 more join urban youth jobs project

THE National Capital District Commission Urban Youth Employment Project (UYEP) public works and community service programme has recruited 145 youths from the suburbs of Gordon and Erima to undergo training.
The project which encourages 40 per cent women’s participation, has seen 56 females and 89 males between the ages of 16 and 35 years being selected recently and was distributed into 23 groups.
Speaking during the batch orientation last Thursday, youth facilitator Jonathan Douglas urged the trainees to learn as much as they could within this short period to enhance their employment skills so they can enter the job market.
The operations manager of Aku Enterprise Limited, which is contracted to train the youths, Wari Kila, said the project was very important as it was a form of intervening to bring change to youths that could not make it into the formal education system.
“The focal point of the project was changing mindsets of the youths as the training involved behavioural changes where the individual is trained to be a productive citizen and to go out of the project and earn a living to sustain themselves,” Kila said.
The other suburbs under the project’s 20th intake, besides Gordon and Erima, are Boroko, Hohola, Gerehu, Rainbow, Hanuabada and 7, 8 and 9-Mile.
The project has registered about 15,000 youths during its 20th intake.
About 20 per cent will be selected to do pre-employment training at two recognised institutions in NCD while 80 per cent will join the project’s youth job corps training programme.