To strengthen the skill ecosystem in the shipmaking industry, Swisscontact Bangladesh has inked a pact with Khulna Shipyard (KSY) for providing state-of-the-art welding training to youths under its ambitious Uttoron project. Upgrading a government training institute -- Technical Training Center (TTC) operated by KSY in this case -- to introduce this much-needed skill is one of Uttoron’s three main objectives, according to Chevron’s Bangladesh Partnership Initiative which provides funding for the project. Read:Chevron provides Covid-19 support to community hospitals With its existing available training courses not internationally standardised, Bangladesh is currently lagging behind in the global employment market. Therefore, this project seeks to mitigate the demand for 3G and 4G level welding training, both at home and abroad. The event took place at a city hotel attended by the Managing Director of KSY, Commodore M Zakirul Islam; President of Chevron Bangladesh Eric M Walker; Director (PSC) of Petrobangla, Md Shaheenur Islam; Director of Corporate Affairs at Chevron Bangladesh, Md Imrul Kabir; and Country Director of Swisscontact, Mujibul Hasan. Expressing his gratitude to Chevron and Swisscontact for embarking on this important initiative, KSY’s Commodore Islam said, “I’d like to thank Chevron and Swisscontact for taking us on as their partner for this very crucial initiative. We have enough people, but not enough skilled people." Read: Chevron extends support for setting up training institute in Sylhet "We are working to develop our human resources. We want a skilled population that can increase production and contribute to our economy. We are proud to be part of a programme funded by Chevron and implemented by Swisscontact that can build a skilled workforce, who can, in turn, make a lasting contribution to Bangladesh.” Chevron Bangladesh President Eric M Walker said, “The blending of skills, technical oversight and organisational capabilities of these two stellar organisations will fulfill the cornerstones of this programme -- sustainability beyond its lifespan, accessibility to market-driven, demand-driven vocational skills, and potential for future growth.” Read:Three shipyards fined for violating environment rules Director of Petrobangla, Md Shaheenur said, “Chevron’s Bangladesh Partnership Initiative (BPI) is playing a vital role in improving the socio-economic condition of Bangladesh.” Bangladesh currently has an economically active population of 63.4 million people, with a labour force which is growing at a rate of 1.3 million every year. Some 60.7 million are employed, indicating joblessness which has been exacerbated by Covid.