Provide Skills for Indonesian Unemployed Youth

The World Bank estimated in 2020 that 91,000 children in Indonesia would drop out of school - including a 0.15 percentage point increase in secondary school dropouts. This increase in dropout rates would eventually lead to an increase in youth unemployment and ultimately the perpetuation of poverty in rural areas of Indonesia.Low levels of education and a lack of adequate skills are the main contributing factors to the high unemployment rate. The Vocational Training Centre (VTC) we run in Cipanas, West Java, not only provides various job readiness skills, but also different workshops, such as our Job Seeking Skills Workshop.

Last month, for the first time since the pandemic, we ran the Job Seeking Skill workshop with the help of Mr. I Kadek Darmayuda, who is the Housekeeping Manager at one of the hotels in the area. He started the workshop by explaining how to make a persuasive application letter and curriculum vitae, then he continued by sharing about what a company wants from a potential candidate. He ended the sessions by sharing tips on how to be successful in an interview. In between the sessions, he sometimes asks the student simple questions that would lead to a discussion. There were 46 participants attending this workshop, and they are all active students of our English, Sewing and Computer classes. 

“My latest education is junior high school. I did not continue to high school because my parents could not afford the tuition fees. Right now, I am enrolled in the Sewing class. Mr Kadek has given me so much precious information about job applications. He delivered the material in an easy way to understand. “ Lutfiah, 18 years old

“I am a student of Computer class, my tutor is Mr. Deden. I am glad that now I have more information about how to apply for a job in the future. I hope for more workshops like this in the future.” Jeris, 18 years old, 12th grader.

We wish to run more workshops for these students, in addition to the job readiness skills offered at the VTC. The pandemic is predicted to worsen the labor market especially for Indonesia’s young candidates. For these reasons, we believe that providing job readiness training and soft skills for youth would give the required support for them in their path to becoming productive adults.