E/R: SOS Children's Villages And DHL Express Organize Career Workshop For The Youth

SOS Children's Villages and DHL Express have organized a five (5) day residential career development workshop for a total of fifty tertiary students from level 100-400 and those who have just graduated from the University made up of twenty-nine (29) males and twenty-one (21) females in Akyem New Tafo in the Abuakwa North Municipality of the Eastern Region of Ghana.

The workshop started on the 2nd October, 2023 ended on the 6th October, 2023.

According to Mr Godknows Kwaku kporah, National Youth Development Advisor, SOS, the program is geared towards bridging the youth unemployment situation in the country and it's being organized annually.

He said, the theme for workshop "Helping Young People To Develop The Right Skills For Their Career Path" has brought together resources persons from University of Ghana, DHL Express with three (3) main outcomes.

"This year's boot camp was on the theme "Helping Young People To Develop The Right Skills For Their Career Path" with three main outcomes.

First, to empower young people to have the capacity to develop a right career path for themselves based on their interests, capacity, business, talents and passion.



The second outcome is, to empower the young people with the needed skills to design competitive curriculum vitae, cover letters as well as how to look for jobs and prepare for job interviews.



The final outcome is to prepare the young people to develop entrepreneurship skills for job creation with various facilitators from University of Ghana, Future Careers Ghana, DHL Express and their volunteers, Head Of State Award Scheme, Learning Organization and other individuals who volunteered". Mr Godknows Kwaku kporah mentioned.


He posited that, once the SOS Villages have a youth group leaving the program, they have to equip them with employability and entrepreneurship skills to avert the youth unemployment trend of the country in partnership with DHL that has a corporate social responsibility dubbed "Go Teach" which has the objective to empower young people with employability skills for self reliance and added that, SOS Villages has partnered the DHL for the past ten (10) years sponsoring their boot camps, career fairs, job shadowing and mentorship.

Mr Godknows Kwaku kporah further stated that, the youth empowerment program starting age is fourteen (14) years and existing is twenty-four (24) years of which has been segmented into three.

" Our boot camp has been classified into three, we have life skills and career orientation for the Junior High School pupils, career planning and development and for the tertiary students we have employability and entrepreneurship skills training. Once you are with us you will go through all these stages and by the time you exit, your are well equiped for the job market". His added.

Mr Serigne Mbaye, DHL Forwarding Gh, who lead the DHL volunteers on his part, expressed his enthusiasm to be part of the workshop and added that, private sector should augment government efforts in job creation by encouraging foreign direct investment to help curb youth unemployment and boost local productions in African countries.

He emphasized that, if the right skills are not adopted, investors toil will be in vain hence the need for the youth to be trained today to face the challenges tomorrow.

Mr Alexander Mar Kekula, Country Director of SOS Villages, expressed his gratitude to the organizing team and sponsors for the workshop.

He further admonished the youth to shun away from all social vices and contribute to positive things to help socio-economic development of the country.

Credit: Nana Kwasi Asare