Littoral and West Regional Delegates of Youth Affairs and Civic Education, December 27-28, train on the new vision of the Multipurpose Youth Empowerment Centres.

Young people will through the government-sponsored self-employment programme benefit training and financial support to set up small trades. They will be trained by the Multipurpose Youth Empowerment Centres (MYEC) and funded by the Rural and Urban Youth Support Programme (PAJER-U). December 27-28 witnessed the start of the programme in the Littoral and West with the Delegates of Youth Affairs and Civic Education for the regions trained to that effect in Douala by officials of the Ministry.

The two delegates are expected to train delegates of the Ministry in their respective regions, then youths in that order. The Multipurpose Youth Empowerment Centres which resulted from the advent of the Ministry of Youth Affairs were created to replace the former Youth and Action Centres (YACs) whose organization, functioning and management/operation were seen to have become unadapted to young people’s current preoccupations. Therefore, an orientation study was carried out to make the new structures thus created relevant. This study shows that for the MYEC to be effective and efficient in achieving the work of providing young people with close supervision, they must provide social and vocational counseling; training leading to a qualification; facilitation of socio-economic integration; sound and educative leisure activities and educational activities. Of these main functions, supervision of the socio-economic integration of youths who are former trainees from these centres especially through the development of company incubators for the trained young people is the new major orientation reflected by article 55 of Decree 2005/151 of May 4, 2005, organizing the Ministry of Youth Affairs.

The missions of the MYEC are out-of-school supervision and mentoring of youth for the purpose of its development. They, among other things, design appropriate schemes to carry out sporting, socio-educative, economic, cultural and professional activities for young people, as well as indiscriminate reception of young people whether they are individuals or organized groups, degree holders or not, seeking training or looking for information, or have expertise to offer. These basic objectives take the form of social integration; economic activities; training in small trades; promotion of young people’s junior companies; sound and educative leisure activities; prevention and fight against social ills; protection of the general and the living environments and relaxation and fitness exercises. Rachel Sen Kong, Head of Administrative and Legal Affairs in the Littoral Governor’s Office, opened the workshop attended, among others, by some youths.