AT least 5000 to 6000 secondary school-leavers are “lost into the system” every year.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism Viliame Gavoka made the remark while officiating at a graduation ceremony yesterday.
He acknowledged ServicePro International Tourism and Hospitality Institute (SITHI) for its effort to train as many school- leavers each year to meet the needs of the tourism and hospitality industry.
“It is estimated that 17,000 leave secondary schools per annum, while 12,000-13,000 are absorbed into mainstream education,” he said.
“This leaves 5000 to 6000 lost into the system, awaiting any opportunity that may arise.”
Mr Gavoka said the school recognised the need for labour based on tourism monthly arrivals of 75,000.
“Given the prevailing industry ratio of 1:3 tourists to manpower needs and the 120,000 already on the ground (2022 estimate), (this) training institution had been mandated to produce (a) maximum of 105,000 varied across occupational strata in the industry.
“ServicePro was built on the foundation of giving those that dropped out of the mainstream education another chance to get back into it.”
He said the school had applied for government assistance on capital works and began receiving a grant of $100,000 from 2024.