Approximately 350 trainees are expected to participate in a Youth & Adults Training for Employment (YATE) graduation ceremony at the Kingstown Methodist Church this morning, starting at 9:30 am.
According to a release, after a four year period of intense work, today’s graduation will mark the culmination of the YATE programme, a component of the Human Development Service Delivery (HDSD) project which is funded by a loan through the World Bank.
The YATE programme was designed to assist unemployed and underemployed youth and adults between the ages 17 to 45 years to develop the basic competencies needed to obtain employment and/or to pursue further employment-related training.
Unemployed youths and adults participated in CVQ Levels 1 and 2 programmes, which aimed to provide quality, competency-based certification consistent with labour market needs. The primary target was to gain a minimum of 5 CVQ Units.
An aspect of the training focused on entrepreneurship, life skills coaching, career coaching and financial management which has been impacting the participants even after completion of the training.
Following completion of in-class training, trainees were assigned on work attachments with employers.
The training spanned areas such as Electrical Installation, Plumbing, Data Operations, Food Preparation, Food and Beverage, Welding, Housekeeping, Cosmetology and General Construction.