Provide Skills for Indonesian Unemployed Youth

Dear friends,

This month we would like to share about a recent activity involving a group of students and lecturers from our partner, Bina Nusantara University, one of Indonesia’s top private universities, who visited our communities in Cipanas, West Java, as part of their community service initiative. 

Bina Nusantara University and their initiative “Teach For Indonesia organization” commit to sharing knowledge and empowering young people. In this case, they chose the youth in our community to share knowledge on job readiness and financial literacy, two subjects which are not commonly provided by local schools. 

The local school they visited was SMK Sinar Parahyangan, a vocational high school specializing in  creative and entrepreneurial skills. The students were taught Financial Management for Teens, which emphasized prudent financial choices from an early age, and Skills for Employment such as creating an attractive curriculum vitae and application letter, as well as tips to be prepared for the competitive job market. 

Your continuous support to this project has made it possible for us to continue reaching as many youth as possible, both in West Java and in Central Kalimantan. In doing so, we are grateful for the collaboration with professionals and academics to achieve our mission. 

As we approach the end of the year, we would like to invite you to continue supporting us by sending a donation, or even better, by transforming your donation into a recurring one. Thank you in advance! We wish you a wonderful holiday!

Dear friends,

Through this report, we would like to introduce you to our Vocational Training Centre (VTC), located in Bukit Batu, Central Kalimantan.  The center was established in 2010 and its mission is similar to the one in Cipanas, which is to provide job readiness and soft skills for the youth, through after-school courses in English and Computer skills. Each course runs for 3 months and has various levels of expertise. The students are also provided with Job Seeking Skills and Financial Literacy workshops after completing their courses. Most of the participants of these courses are active high school students. 

Besides English and Computer skills, the VTC in Kalimantan also offers a 12-months Diploma program in Hospitality and Tourism. This program was designed to meet the growing demand in the tourism sector, and the lack of education institutions teaching the necessary skills for the local youth. The tourism sector in Central Kalimantan has grown tremendously these past few years, with an increased number of hotels, guest houses and tourism attractions in the area. The participants of this program are mostly high school graduates. 

Every year, around 250 to 400 students from various schools in the sub-district follow the three types of courses. As most people living in Bukit Batu struggle to find formal employment, we hope that by providing these skills, the youth will have a better chance at finding decent and stable jobs in the future.

Let’s hear what AH (Grade 11) said about his experience learning English at our VTC: “I enjoy my learning sessions at YUM.  I learn many new vocabulary words and pronounce them correctly. I feel more confident in speaking English now, and am grateful that I have new skills that can be useful in seeking a job in the future.”

And here is another testimonial from LA, a high school graduate, who enrolled in the computer class:

“Prior to this, I was working as a housekeeper, but then I got an offer to work in a company which required me to be able to operate a computer. Therefore, I enrolled in this course. It dawned on me that if I had had the ability to operate computers, I might already have a better job. At YUM, the computer lessons provided are related to the work environment. For example, I learned how to use Excel to work on administrative tasks.”

We look forward to continuing supporting the youth in both West Java and Central Kalimantan so that they are able to learn the skills they need to find decent employment. Your donations are making all of this possible. Please consider transforming your one time donation into monthly giving, which would provide us with a more sustainable source of funds that we can use to plan our programs, create budgets, and expand our services. Thank you once again for your support and generosity!