Tierra Firme has successfully closed the phase of theoretical professional training in Senegal. Specifically, 216 young people from the neighboring African country have participated in the seven courses launched by the Government of the Canary Islands in accredited centers with the aim of facilitating their labor integration and discouraging migration through the dangerous Atlantic Route.
Once this stage of theoretical training is completed and complying with the calendar set by the Autonomous Executive, the beneficiaries of Tierra Firme will now begin a three-month internship period in Spanish and Canarian companies installed in Senegal. The program will conclude in May with a final phase of monitoring and support for the labor insertion of young people with the aim of reaching the 100% achieved in the pilot project.
The dual professional training has been given in sectors of great relevance for the economy of Senegal and for Spanish companies in the country. Specifically, tourism and hospitality courses have been carried out (with 50 places), construction and plumbing (20), construction and electricity (20), construction focused on scaffolding and masonry (59), agriculture (37), textile (10), and renewable energies (20).
This new and much broader phase of the Tierra Firme project has a budget of 700,000 euros and is scheduled to conclude in May of this year. The beneficiaries are young Senegalese of both sexes aged between 18 and 35 years. For the most part, they belong to disadvantaged groups at risk of social exclusion.
The objective of the pioneering initiative of the Government of the Canary Islands is to facilitate the creation of quality employment and generate new talent in the African countries from which companies established in Senegal and Mauritania can benefit, particularly Spanish and Canarian companies. In Senegal, 50 young people already completed their training last summer, a similar number to those participating in Mauritania in the pilot project currently underway.
Sectors with high demand
The dual professional training that the Government of the Canary Islands is currently promoting in Senegal repeats three sectors present in the 2024 pilot project: agriculture, textile and tourism. In addition, courses in construction and renewable energies are incorporated, two other sectors where companies demand qualified labor in this West African country.
The coordination of the tourism and hospitality course is in charge of the Official Chamber of Commerce of Spain in Senegal and the training has been given at the Centre de Référence aux Métiers du Tourisme (CRMT) and at the Higher Institute of Professional Education of Thies (ISEP Thies. The 50 young beneficiaries will now carry out 12 weeks of internships in companies previously selected for the training.
For their part, the plumbing and electricity courses are organized by the Provincial Federation of Metal and New Technologies Companies of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (FEMETE) and the provincial federation of SMEs of metal and new technologies of the province of Las Palmas, (FEMEPA). The training in this field of scaffolding and masonry is coordinated by the Labor Foundation of Construction. 59 young Senegalese benefit and it has been taught at the 2IFA Academy of Dakar.
The dual professional training courses in agriculture, textile and renewable energies are directly managed by the Technological Institute of the Canary Islands (ITEC). On the ground, the theoretical-practical training in agriculture corresponds to the Higher Institute of Professional Education of Thiès, a center that belongs to the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation of Senegal.
Regarding renewable energies, the training is carried out at the CERER (Center for Studies and Research on Renewable Energies), an Institute attached to the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar (UCAD).
Finally, the training in the area of textile sponsored by Tierra Firme is carried out at the Future CAIF Incubator Learning Center, an institution based in Dakar specializing in professional training in Textile, Fashion, Sewing and Hairdressing, while the internships will be carried out in the company Número 1.