Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment Ahmed Mahloof said the National Apprenticeship Programme is a good opportunity for every student to find employment in the field they want to pursue. He made these remarks while speaking at the closing ceremony of the National Apprenticeship Programme with Housing Development Corporation (HDC) to provide employment opportunities to the youth of the country.
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister Mahloof said the main purpose of the programme is to address the challenges of bringing talented youth into the job market. He said the certificate given to the youth who complete the programme is a good opportunity to find employment. As such, he said the youth will be able to pursue their careers in the field they want to pursue. In addition, he said the programme aims to provide opportunities for youth who have not chosen a specific field to pursue and make them competent in the job market without hesitation.
Meanwhile, Managing Director of HDC Ahmed Athif said there are many foreigners in important manufacturing sectors in the Maldives. Noting that it has not happened overnight, he said such programmes create interest among the youth for the jobs. He also said that the purpose of such programmes is to bring talented youth into the job market.
In addition, Athif said HDC attaches great importance to building professionally talented youth in various fields and providing many opportunities for youth development. Therefore, he said HDC will fully support the government's efforts to bring youth into the job market. He said HDC will also give great importance to developing the country and building the youth.
This is the fifth such programme run by HDC under the National Apprenticeship Programme. This year's programme saw 72 participants who completed the programme and received certificates. The four-month programme trained youth in 10 fields. The fields include Heavy Vehicle, Welding, Machinery, Gardening, Electrical, Building Maintenance, Carpentry, Plumbing, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Mechanic and Construction Site Supervision. HDC also trained the largest number of youth in the government's national apprenticeship programme in 2022.