Manpower, leading employment services provider, has entered into a joint drive with the Education For Employment Foundation (EFE) to provide training and job prospects for first-time job seekers, especially in the Mena region.

EFE operates a social franchising network of civil society organisations that include a sister foundation in Europe and five not-for-profit affiliates in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena).

EFE will recruit, train and place candidates in conjunction with local businesses, and connect its graduates with Manpower’s resources.

Manpower will provide tools for selecting and evaluating candidates, help secure internships and hiring commitments for EFE graduates, and provide the expertise and resources of its global network, which offers services through offices located in 82 countries.

“Connecting individuals seeking employment to companies looking for talented workers is the very essence of our company,” said David Arkless, president of corporate and government affairs, Manpower.

“While many young people in the region find themselves unemployed, conversely many positions are left unfilled as growing demand for skilled workers cannot be satisfied. Manpower has more than 60 years of expertise in linking the two.'

The agreement is aimed at lowering youth unemployment in the Mena region, which has reached as high as 50 per cent in certain areas, and where an additional 100 million job seekers are set to enter the workforce in the next 15 years.

In the first collaborative program, Manpower has helped select a group of young Moroccan women from disadvantaged backgrounds for enrollment in an EFE training programme to prepare participants for retail sales roles.

“Joining forces with Manpower, a global, socially responsible corporation, will further EFE’s work of giving jobless youth the tools and opportunity to find sustainable employment,” said Ron Bruder, CEO and founder of EFE.

“The synergies between Manpower and EFE can create tremendous opportunities for successful employment-focused training programs,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service