NEWS - NAMIBIA
| 2013-08-07CCM creates opportunities for jobless youths
Luqman Cloete
MANY young people find it difficult to break into the job market because of many barriers such as lack of experience, skills and training.
Recently the Namibian Labour Force Survey revealed that joblessness among the youth stands 42,8% and that only 1,3 percent of the unemployed young people have tertiary education.
But into this grim situation comes a breeze of hope.
The Namibia Catering and Contracts Management (Pty) Ltd has been offering hope to the unemployed through its initiative, Komesho Culinary Academy, which provides employment skills to help youths with experience and skills to enter and succeed in the industrial catering and hospitality sector.
“As part of our social responsibility, we want to open the door for them to enter the job market. We want to make a difference in people’s lives especially the youth,” said CCM managing director Glenn Schluter.
He also said that the academy, affiliated to the Institute of Hospitality Studies and whose curriculum is supplied by the Namibian Training Authoritiy, was created in 2008 to cater for CCM’s culinary training and for possible future training for the catering and hospitality industry in the Karas Region.
In 2009, CCM in conjunction with Rosh Pinah Obib Training Centre started by training seven previously disadvantaged locals.
“These individuals were given seven months of extensive culinary training and now are full time employees of CCM. We equip them to make a difference in their lives,” Schluter said.
According to Schluter, to date CCM has trained 50 previously disadvantaged young Namibians as part of its social responsibility and upliftment programme.
“If more youths get employed through this kind of training and are assisted to develop employability skills, the less social problems we will have in our society,” Schluter remarked.
He described the catering and hospitality industry as a “unique” sector for which “you must have a passion to serve others”.
Sous Chef Julian Van Deventer said the current intake has 12 students, eight of whom come mainly from Caprivi and Rundu and are being sponsored by PE Minerals, a company that has a stake in Rosh Pinah Zinc Corporation.
Some of the trainees whom The Namibian spoke to said they have learnt how to bake and to cook Indian dishes during the four months of their seven-month training.
luqman@namibian.com.na
Recently the Namibian Labour Force Survey revealed that joblessness among the youth stands 42,8% and that only 1,3 percent of the unemployed young people have tertiary education.
But into this grim situation comes a breeze of hope.
The Namibia Catering and Contracts Management (Pty) Ltd has been offering hope to the unemployed through its initiative, Komesho Culinary Academy, which provides employment skills to help youths with experience and skills to enter and succeed in the industrial catering and hospitality sector.
“As part of our social responsibility, we want to open the door for them to enter the job market. We want to make a difference in people’s lives especially the youth,” said CCM managing director Glenn Schluter.
He also said that the academy, affiliated to the Institute of Hospitality Studies and whose curriculum is supplied by the Namibian Training Authoritiy, was created in 2008 to cater for CCM’s culinary training and for possible future training for the catering and hospitality industry in the Karas Region.
In 2009, CCM in conjunction with Rosh Pinah Obib Training Centre started by training seven previously disadvantaged locals.
“These individuals were given seven months of extensive culinary training and now are full time employees of CCM. We equip them to make a difference in their lives,” Schluter said.
According to Schluter, to date CCM has trained 50 previously disadvantaged young Namibians as part of its social responsibility and upliftment programme.
“If more youths get employed through this kind of training and are assisted to develop employability skills, the less social problems we will have in our society,” Schluter remarked.
He described the catering and hospitality industry as a “unique” sector for which “you must have a passion to serve others”.
Sous Chef Julian Van Deventer said the current intake has 12 students, eight of whom come mainly from Caprivi and Rundu and are being sponsored by PE Minerals, a company that has a stake in Rosh Pinah Zinc Corporation.
Some of the trainees whom The Namibian spoke to said they have learnt how to bake and to cook Indian dishes during the four months of their seven-month training.
luqman@namibian.com.na
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