Some 48 young people are to benefit from a computer and office training programme which was launched at the Gafoors Houston complex yesterday.

Karen Williams, Deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy addresses the gathering while other members of the head table look on. From left to right are: Alana Brassington Secretary of BIT, Sattaur Gafoor of Gafsons Group of Companies, Minister of Labour Manzoor Nadir, Peter Assing of Friendship Oxygen Company and Dale Bisnauth, chairman of BIT.

The programme is being sponsored by Friendship Oxygen Company in collaboration with the National Training Project for Youth Empowerment‘s Board of Industrial Training (BIT), which has been carrying out training programmes for young people since it was launched by the government in 2005 and seeks to educate 1,750 youths in a year.

The programme entails a six-month period of computer and office training as well as training in other skills.
The students will be divided into two groups; one group will undergo classroom work in the morning while the other group will be involved in on-the–job training. The two groups will then exchange places.

Several companies have volunteered to host at least six of the students at their offices, while the computer training will be carried out at the premises of the Friendship Oxygen Company and will include basic work in MS Word, Excel, Publisher and PowerPoint.

The classroom programme will also include courses in Mathematics and English Language; Attitudes and Etiquettes, HIV/AIDS, and Micro-enterprise.

Minister of Labour Manzoor Nadir, addressing the gathering yesterday, told the students that regardless of where they came from they should utilize this opportunity to get somewhere better. The minister commended Peter Assing of the Friendship Oxygen Company for the contribution he is making to society and more directly to the students by putting up some $3 million for the hardware needed for the  programme and also for coordinating and providing the location for the classroom work.

Karen Williams, Deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy shared her personal experience with the students encouraging them to make the most of what they are being offered.

She challenged them to look at the programme as a key to their future.
Companies who have pledged their support for in the programme include New GPC-Sanata Complex, Kaieteur News, Banks DIH, NAMILCO, DIDCO, AINLIM, Prittipaul Singh Invest-ments, Gafsons Group of Companies, Guyana National Printers Limited, Guyana National Shipping Company and BK International.