People aged 15 to 24 are welcome to join the second phase of the joint recruitment of the Youth Pre-employment Training Programme and the Youth Work Experience Training Scheme for 2006-07. Admission is free.

Speaking at the Youths Fly High launch ceremony today, Permanent Secretary for Economic Development & Labour Matthew Cheung said the two programmes have seen more than 120,000 people trained.

With the sustained economic recovery, the jobless rate for the age group was 8.4% from November to January, while the number of jobless was 33,300. Comparing the figures with those in the peak unemployment period in June to August, 2003, both the jobless rate and the number of unemployed dropped more than 50%.

New centres

About 12,700 jobs were created last year for people aged 15 to 24. From November to January, more than 80% of the 58,000 school leavers who entered the labour market found a job. Compared with the same period a year earlier, the situation improved in terms of both the employment rate and number of employed.

"As a step to further enhance employment support for young people, the department will set up two new youth employment resource centres at the end of the year to provide one-stop comprehensive service for youths aged 15 to 29, including existing and former trainees of the two programmes. The service will range from career counselling, value-added training to self-employment support," Mr Cheung said.

Application forms for the two programmes are available here. The Labour Department has set up a special youth employment services hotline 2112 9932 to offer one-stop enquiry service on the two programmes and to receive training vacancies from employers.