merrion street

Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Microsoft today announced details of its YouthSpark programme in Ireland with an investment of €6 million by the company, and a target to empower 30,000 youth to change their future over the next three years. The programme includes a range of educational initiatives, software donations for youth focused non-profit organisations as well as support for entrepreneurial initiatives.

As part of the YouthSpark programme, Microsoft and "Fast Track to IT" (FIT) have come together to develop Youth2Work to help tackle Ireland's youth unemployment problem. It is a training and development programme targeted at 18-25 year olds, giving them information, advice and access to 'in-demand' skills, and work experience.

Complementing existing government funded interventions, this youth focused initiative aims to reach 10, 000 unemployed youth over the next three years helping to strenghten their chances of securing work in the IT sector.

Speaking at the launch, the Taoiseach said:

The Government's top priority is to get Ireland working again. We are committed to addressing the issue of youth unemployment as we cannot allow a generation to become long term unemployed. In responding to this challenge we are implementing our Pathways to Work reform programme, which has radically transformed how the State supports jobseekers to get back into the work force. In addition, we have launched a series of training intervention programmes over the past two years to help tackle youth unemployment and to promote ICT skills training. The issue of youth unemployment has also been prioritised in our EU Presidency.  

Former Boxing World Champion Bernard Dunne, who has been announced as the Youth2Work Champion, said:

Helping to ensure that young people have the opportunity to achieve their potential is one of the things that I feel passionate about - whether that is in sport, in education or in professional life. Regardless of what you want to do or what kind of a job you ultimately end up in, having technology skills is essential.

Commenting about the launch of YouthSpark in Ireland, Cathriona Hallahan, MD for Microsoft Ireland, said:

While the economic indicators are beginning to improve, a major concern for the future is the high level of youth unemployment. I welcome the Government's commitment to addressing this problem and was delighted to see that it is a priority for the EU Presidency.