For information only - not an official document
UNIS/OUS/257
17 September 2014
VIENNA/PRAIA,15 September (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) - For some 2,700 young people in Cabo Verde, the new school year started today with a novelty: for two hours each week they will study a new subject - entrepreneurship.
The Ministry of Education is introducing the subject in grades 9 and 12 in a dozen schools as a pilot project implemented in partnership with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and with the support of the Government of Portugal.
To celebrate the launch of the Entrepreneurship Curriculum Programme, Fernanda Marques, Cabo Verde's Minister of Education, visited the Cesaltina Ramos technical school in the capital, Praia, on Monday.
"Entrepreneurship is about acquiring basic skills to improve our environment and our capacity for individual growth," said Marques, pointing to the example of Angola and Mozambique, both beneficiaries of the same UNIDO programme.
By promoting creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurial attitudes and skills, the Government of Cabo Verde expects to lay the foundation for the development of a dynamic private sector. The initiative is part of the country's efforts to respond to the socio-economic challenges facing Cabo Verde and to prepare young people for their future careers.
The Ambassador of Portugal, Bernardo Lucena, who participated in the visit to the school, added, "Entrepreneurship is an attitude that should be encouraged as soon as possible, and this is what this programme is doing".
In preparation for the start of the school year, UNIDO has trained 86 teachers, 12 school directors and several pedagogical directors. A two-week training programme took place both in Praia on the island of Santiago, and in Mindelo on the island of São Vicente. The teacher training workshops benefitted from the support of a co-trainer seconded from the Ministry of Education of Angola, which has developed its own ECP that has been tested over three years, and is now being implemented in all the country's provinces.
* *** *
For more information, please contact:
Gabriele
Ott
Rural Entrepreneurship Development and Human Security Unit, UNIDO
Email: G.Ott[at]unido.org
