The Sophia Training Centre (STC) in Georgetown on July 10 held a graduation ceremony for 85 youths who successfully completed training in six areas under the Youth Entrepreneurial Skills Training (YEST) programme.
The STC offers six months free training for youths between the ages of 16 and 25 years in catering, handicraft, information technology, office administration, refrigeration and air conditioning, welding and fabrication, and masonry.
The 21st graduating class of the Sophia Training Centre
According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) release, the programme caters for unemployed youths and school dropouts, with the aim of equipping them with a skill, thereby making them employable.
The course comprises 65 per cent practical and 35 per cent theoretical work. Inclusive in the practical aspect of the training is a six-week attachment period within an industry relevant to the skills taught.
Youths are also taught remedial mathematics and English, health education, life skills and other extracurricular activities to ensure a rounded development.
Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Dr Frank Anthony told the graduating class that the ministry was pleased that they stayed with the programme.
He noted that as a result of this persistence and perseverance, today they could feel a sense of accomplishment.
The staff must also be congratulated, he said, for mentoring the students and for overcoming the challenges of dealing with the unique needs of each child.
It is coincidental and unique that this graduation took place two days before International Youth Day, Minister Anthony said, and pointed to the work that the ministry is doing: “A lot of time, the work that we are doing in the ministry goes a little bit unnoticed; not many people recognise that we run quite a number of training programmes.”
The ministry is very proud of the programme, and with every passing year it is seeing tremendous improvement in the quality of these programmes as well as in the number of persons who benefit.
The minister took the time to highlight some of the training programmes offered to youths through the ministry, from the training at the National Museum to the ministry’s youth health education programmes, steel pan, dance and art.
With respect to steel pan training, Minister Anthony said staff of his ministry are going to different communities and working with teachers in training the students to play the instrument.
The ministry has a lot to offer but many youths are unaware of the opportunities available, he said.
“We want all of you that are here to be ambassadors of our programmes,” the minister told the gathering. “You have seen what we can do in a short period of six months, so you can be advocates of our programmes,” he said.
He urged the youths to let this be the beginning of the process of edifying themselves.
“Do not close off your education because you are graduating today. Continue learning because if you want to be successful in your life you have to constantly learn and adapt to new things,” he said.
Senior training officer of the Sophia Training Centre, David Sookram congratulated the youth and thanked the many businesses that contributed to the development and training of the youth.
The Culture Ministry offers the YEST programme as an educational advancement to youth across the country and has centres available in the various regions. The training at these centres varies in terms of duration. The primary centres are the Kuru Kuru Training Centre and the Sophia Training Centre. The latter centre is equipped to accommodate 120 trainees, 20 each in the six areas of training.
