Youth employment awash

As AMICI opens shipyard

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol Nov 28 (PIA) –Out of school youth and young men whose hopes of a good life dried with depravity are now donning hard hats, safety shoes, thick gloves and confident that the shipyard which opened, could be the luck that could ferry them out of a wasted life and poverty.

This as Artemis Marine Industrial Construction Incorporated (AMICI) opened its first 2 hectares of shipyard in Barangay Cruz, Buenavista, Bohol, and launched its technical and vocational skills training school at the nearby Buenavista Training Center.

While the shipyard hires Boholano out-of school youth and hopeless men from poor backgrounds so they can provide for their families, the training center can also equip these young men who have abandoned their hopes of a good life, with the skills needed in boat building and repair, said Primary Group of Builders Chief Executive Officer William Christopher Liu, Jr.

“We prefer coming to less fortunate and less developed areas, so we could bring employment, where there is none,” Liu, whose family also owns real estate giant Primary Homes, and the Maayo business subsidiaries, shared to the modest crowd of local officials and AMICI workers gathered during the launching ceremony.

“The shipyard that features heavy industrial equipment for boatbuilding and repair also presents itself as a learning area for their trained cadets, whom the company intends to field out to domestic and international vessels needing in-house repair teams,” according to Bohol Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Provincial Director Engr Winefredo Salas Jr.

Most of these young men dreamt of studying nautical and maritime courses as most young ambitious Boholanos would go, study for 4 years at the city’s Philippine Maritime Institute. But without the resources, they end up without the technical skills that can land them in some work,” Liu explained.

For the four years these youth missed in formal school, AMICI is giving 6 months of intensive military-fashioned training for marine cadets, and that the training has already completed batches of marine cadets now working and hopes regained.

The six months of training allows the young men to earn their seamanship book, Buenavista Mayor and lawyer Dave Duallo added.

Profusely thankful for coming to Buenavista and bringing in multimillion investments that has already pinned the town in the country for opening the best shipyard yet according to the Maritime Industry Authorities in the region, Duallo highlighted AMICI’s labor intensive investments.

They are operation 24/7, in three shifts that we have about 400 locals working here, and 80% are from Buenavista, he told media.

On the other hand, Bohol Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado, who was guest of honor during the ceremonies said the AMICI’s plan fits tightly with his Economic Zone Development blueprint which he passed as a congressman then.

Aumentado said, in the plan is Inabanga, Buenavista, Getafe, Talibon, Trinidad and Ubay as growth nerve-centers in northeastern Bohol.

This is the area needing most help, these towns facing Cebu and their viability as an expansion area, we want to invite more investors to come here, Aumentado called.

He also hailed AMICI for the grand plan to create in this area in Bohol a Maritime Hub and soon, a maritime City that would be first in the region. (rahc/PIA_7/Bohol)

LAUNCHING JOB OPPORTUNITIES. AMICI shipyard opens with a good promise for Boholano OSY and unemployed youth who can be trained in maritime stewardship, or provide the manpower in boatbuilding and repairs, according to William Christopher Liu, Jr. CEO and President, towards Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado’s left. With them were Amici manager Alvin Basal (Aumentado’s right) and Buenavista mayor Atty Dave Duallo.

EMPLOYMENT. William Christopher Liu Jr. and Gov Erico Aristotle Aumentado discussed future developments in the shipyard as both led the guests in inspecting the ongoing repair of ships docked at the shipyard. Buenavista provides 80% of the 400 employees hired by the company.