TK Elevator extends partnership with SOS Children’s Villages

Continuing the commitment

Through the signature of the new 3-years contract with SOS Children’s Villages, TK Elevator continues its commitment to support young people without a family network in gaining skills and in qualifying them for the labor market being prepared for an independent life. The partnership with SOS Children’s Villages that started in 2017 has already resulted in training of roughly 600 youth through the support of 200 TK Elevator volunteers – company experts that act as instructors, mentors, and also as role models for the young people.

Education4Future

In the course of the contract’s renewal, TK Elevator changed the initiative’s name. While it had started as project SEED (Support, Educate, Elevate, Develop) in 2017, from now on its official title is Education4Future. The program is currently offered in Colombia, Brazil, Uruguay, India, and Thailand and is aiming to expand its geographical reach while also increasing the numbers of young people trained by intensifying the virtual approach through online trainings or mentoring.

TK Elevator and the much-respected global NGO SOS Children’s Villages strive to help young people in regions with severe youth unemployment rates. Worldwide, more than 68 Mio. young people are looking for a job, 270 Mio. are neither in employment, education nor training, over 123 Mio. youth are working while living in poverty. Young people without adequate parental care are particularly disadvantaged.

"We have a clear goal: Continuing with the program which aims at social balance and improved quality of life amongst youth while also raising awareness for the importance of social responsibility activities. With the current 3-years-partnership agreement and our Education4Future program, we ensure giving young people with challenging backgrounds a much better chance to live a self-determined life", says Philipp Voet Vormizeele, CHRO at TK Elevator.

Pave the way for young people

By offering basic skills trainings, career guidance, entrepreneurship support and real-world work experience, TK Elevator aims to pave the way for the young people to become employable and independent adults. With Education4Future, the company participates in the YouthCan! Initiative of SOS Children’s Villages which builds on a strong alliance between non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and governments.

Petra Horn, Executive Board Member of SOS Children’s Villages worldwide, adds: "Today, youth unemployment is a global challenge. But children and youth who have grown up in alternative care or in an SOS Children's Village face much bigger obstacles. They haven't had the chance to learn naturally from their parents to get an idea how the working life looks like. These young people need special support. By extending our partnership with TK Elevator for another three years, we will ensure that these young people continue to have a future full of opportunities."

Under the program Education4Future, local TK Elevator employees provide their expertise and access to their professional social networks while the company provides financial aid to entrepreneurship projects and offers apprenticeships as well as career opportunities.

The problems caused by COVID-19 made the support a lot more difficult in 2019/2020. Fortunately, TK Elevator succeeded in shifting from face-to-face trainings to online workshops so the program could continue despite multiple restrictions.

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