Over 30 youths from the Western Highlands province are now in a better position to start their own small businesses after completing a Youth in MSME training program conducted at Ogelbang, Mt. Hagen Central. The training is the culmination of work progressed since 2021 after a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Small Medium Enterprise Corporation (SMEC) and the National Youth Development Authority (NYDA). The training started on Monday the 26th of June and officially ended on the 4th of July, which saw 32 Youth participants graduating with a certificate in Youth in MSME, which is an internationally accredited and ILO Certified training program. The training was made possible with the support of the NYDA and SMEC and The Mt Hagen City Authority. This partnership forged so far, is having great impacts on the lives of out-of-school youths of the district. The Graduation Ceremony was attended by the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Mt Hagen City Authority, Mr. Jim Pena and the Managing Director of SMEC, Mr. Petrus Ralda. Both leaders spoke highly of the partnership approach, saying that it is the ideal method to foster change in the minds of youths. The leaders acknowledged and appreciated the work of NYDA in bridging and reaching the young people right down to the ward level through the District Youth Development Council (DYDC) network. To kick start the youth in MSME activities, each agency gave K 10,000 (total K20, 000) to the Mt Hagen District Youth Development Council for them to drive the program at the Local Level Government (LLG) levels. The President of the Mt Hagen District Youth Council, Mr. Philip Mumuky was grateful to the NYDA for the delivery of this “Youth in MSME Training,” which he acknowledged was the catalyst to source support from other stakeholders in the province. He also stated that the presence of NYDA in the district through this program gives more prominence to the work of Mt Hagen Central DYDC. Since its establishment in 2021, this is one of the big activities rested on the DYDC and they are excited to drive it forward. "Under the NYDA/SMEC partnership, we intend to rollout out a similar program in other districts. Empowering youths via MSME program sets a better motivation for youths to plot their future in the right direction." NYDA hopes to continue to groom the next generation of young potential entrepreneurs through such intervention in partnership with all stakeholders.