4,500 Youth get employment after two months of training
These successful candidates have found job opportunities in various reputable organisations such as Bata, Apex, Shwapno, Meena Bazar, and Artisan.
More than 4,500 individuals have secured employment after undergoing two months of training in retail sales. This achievement includes individuals facing unemployment or disadvantage, with special emphasis on those with disabilities.
These successful candidates have found job opportunities in various reputable organisations such as Bata, Apex, Shwapno, Meena Bazar, and Artisan.
To celebrate this remarkable accomplishment, the BRAC Skills Development Programme organised an event titled 'Successful Careers in the Retail Sector for Youth' on Wednesday at Hotel Intercontinental, Dhaka.
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The retail sector stands out as one of the most promising sectors in the Bangladesh economy, employing over 6 million people. BRAC has conducted training in Dhaka, Chattogram, Khulna, and Sylhet to equip youth with skills in this sector.
During the event, 7 individuals who had undergone training in the project shared their life-changing stories. Additionally, 10 institutions were awarded crests in recognition of their contributions to providing employment and apprenticeship opportunities to the trained individuals. The recognised companies include Miniso, Meena Bazaar, Artisan Outfitters Limited, Bata, Amana Big Bazaar, Unimart, Shwapno, Swodesh Palli, Apex Footwear Ltd, and Mirror. It is noteworthy that this initiative involved more than 150 private sector partners.
Md. Abdus Samad, retired Senior Secretary and Chairperson, the Social Development Foundation said graduate youth with a GPA of five in their education period are also not getting jobs due to a lack of work skills. Those who are being sent abroad are also not getting good jobs due to a lack of skills. We have to think about how to increase the technical skills of our youth.
The event commenced with an opening speech by Safi Rahman Khan, Director of Education, Skills Development, and Migration Programme of BRAC.
He said, BRAC arranges training in Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna and Sylhet to skill the youth in the promising retail sector in Bangladesh. This training was initiated in 2020 through the project 'Progressing the Retail Sector by Improving Decent Employment'.
Dr Imran Matin, Executive Director of BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) said that networking is very important in the job sector. While networking opportunities exist for men, women do not. This is why women lag behind in employment.
Dr Md Alfaz Hossain, Additional Secretary and Project Director of the Comprehensive Village Development Programme (CVDP); and Alif Rudaba, Joint Secretary and Member (Coordination & Assessment) of the National Skills Development Authority were present as the special guests. Tasmiah Rahman, Associate Director of the BRAC Skills Development Programme delivered the closing speech.
The project, titled 'Progressing the Retail Sector by Improving Decent Employment,' has been funded by the IKEA Foundation and UBS Optimus Foundation.
This marks the first retail sales training module in Bangladesh to receive government recognition. Over the past three years, 5,400 people have been trained, with 60 per cent being women and 6 per cent persons with disabilities. Among those trained, 120 persons with disabilities have received assistive devices, including limb support.
