Hon Willie Jackson
Minister of Employment

01 August 2018

MEDIA STATEMENT

Funding provides employment opportunities for 75 Hawke’s Bay rangatahi

Seventy five young people in Hawkes Bay are being supported into employment through LIFT’s He Poutama Rangatahi Hikina programme, said Minister of Employment Willie Jackson who announced funding of $375,000 for the programme today.

“This is an ambitious and exciting project by LIFT Social Enterprise, an organisation that is well connected with a strong focus on providing young job seekers with the critical foundation skills required to enter the job market,” says Willie Jackson.

“LIFT is designed and delivered for young people, by local young people, which makes it unique among employment programmes.

“Young people aged 15 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training make up 16.5 per cent of the population in Hawke’s Bay. This is the second highest in the country after Gisborne.

“By supporting our youth on the pathway to employment we are helping them to grow their resilience, improve their wellbeing and relationships with others. We expect to see reductions in drug use, abuse and crime when our rangatahi are engaged in holistic programmes like these, which invest in the broader pastoral care needed to shift perceptions and entrenched behaviours and for as long as it takes,” says Willie Jackson.

He Poutama Rangatahi is a government initiative to support young people and to bring them together with employers.

“Our youth are our future. Tackling youth unemployment is a government priority that benefits us all. I am committed to working with the communities in our regions of highest need to support our rangatahi into sustained employment,” Willie Jackson says.

ENDS

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