Youth project boosts employment in city

PARTICIPATION in the Urban Youth Employment Project has boosted the employment rate of men and women in Port Moresby, according to a report.
It says since it began in 2010, the projects has helped more than 18,500 people aged between 16 and 35 with jobs, training and casual employment. It estimates that 41 percent are women.
The project is jointly funded by the World Bank, Australia and the National Capital District Commission and supported by Korea, Exxon Mobil and Bank of South Pacific.
The report says the number of people getting jobs after going through the project has increased.
More than 40 per cent of those who completed the on-the-job training managed to secure full-time or part-time employment.
Employers reported that 97 per cent of the participants qualified for fulltime work.
Patricia Veevers-Carter, the World Bank’s country manager for PNG, said youth unemployment was “an increasingly pressing social and economic concern in PNG”.
“More than half the population is under 24 years of age and job opportunities are not growing fast enough to accommodate them,” she said.
“Considering that the report shows none of the project participants were employed six months prior to participating in the programme, the rate at which they have secured employment represents a remarkable success for the project.”
Deputy Prime Minister Charles Abel said participating in the projects for young people “represents a huge milestone in their professional and personal development”.
“It marks their first job experience, their first pay check, their first bank account, and it increases their skills and chances of securing a more permanent job,” he said.