‘Naga youth cannot afford to remain idle for long’

June 11, 2022 50 Views No Comment

Skilling project for unemployed youths under Dimapur-I AC

Morung Express News
Dimapur | June 11

A skilling project targeting the “educated unemployed” was launched on June 10 in Dimapur. An initiative of the Dimapur based NGO— CAN Youth, the project titled Skill2Sustain aims to enhance the employability of the youth.

“Skill2Sustain Project aims to assist youth in developing employability skills and personal qualities related to gaining and sustaining employment. The project duration is for one month and continuous follow-up monitoring process. This project will be carried out in 10 Wards (1-9 and 22) under 1 Dimapur-I Assembly Constituency targeting to train 250 unemployed youth,” stated a handout about the project. Quest Alliance will be the “knowledge partner” in the project.

At the launch programme held at the Tourist Lodge, Jenpu Rongmei, founder and chief functionary of CAN Youth emphasised skilling, along with cultivating or imbibing, in the Naga youth, a suitable attitude towards vocation against the backdrop of unemployment in Nagaland. With an estimated 90,000 youths recorded in the unemployment register, he termed unemployment as one of the biggest problems facing Nagaland today. “It is practically impossible to accommodate all these (the unemployed) in the government sector. Meanwhile, there are a lot of opportunities in the private sector,” he said.

While skilling programmes are there, he pointed out that the Naga youths mostly opt for the hospitality sector, which has come at the cost of ignoring other just as paying job sectors.

“Through this mission, we want to encourage and to provoke the youth of the state,” he said, while informing that the project was being implemented in collaboration with the MLA of 1 Dimapur-I AC, H Tovihoto Ayemi, who is also the Advisor for Power.

The training duration will be free of charge. “Based on our working experience, there are many who cannot afford the fee to undertake (vocational) training,” he added, while informing that the mission objective is to implement project in all the 60 Assembly Constituencies. While 12 passed will be the target population of this project, CAN Youth has another skilling programme targeting high school dropouts or those who dropped out without clearing the HSLC or even class 8.

Advisor H Tovihoto Ayemi, in his address, acknowledged the support provided by the colony councils towards the implementation of the project. CAN Youth have roped in the colony councils to serve as the in-between to route applicants.

Ayemi also brought to fore the dependence on the government sector for employment in Nagaland. With around 1.3 lakh government employees, he said that it would perhaps be the highest among the state governments in India. “1 out of 16 is a government employee in Nagaland. The government sector is saturated (rather) we already have excess employment,” he said, while reminding that the government alone cannot shoulder job demand.

According to him, the Naga youth cannot afford to remain idle for long and that the “just thing is to skill them.”

Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur, Sachin Jaiswal, assured the support of the district administration in the effort towards the promotion of skill development.

Source: https://www.morungexpress.com/naga-youth-cannot-afford-to-remain-idle-for-long