(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) The development of professional skills and reducing the gap between study and work for current graduates have been recognised as key issues for employment of Omani youth.
Initiatives such as Jisser an online internship platform for Omani students and BP Oman's recently announced youth engagement and education strategies are the latest efforts to meet this gap between youth capabilities and needs of the job market.
Jisser - Arabic for 'bridge' - is a student internship platform that seeks to address the issue of professional skills for graduates by connecting potential interns and local businesses through JisserOman.com.
Jisser aims to increase the quality of internship outcomes and develop professional skills for Omani graduates.
Speaking to Muscat Daily Kulthoom al Khmaiyasi founding member of Jisser highlighted the need to 'empower Omani students develop professional skills and provide quality internships with meaningful outcomes'.
She highlighted the frustrations of young Omanis in seeking quality internships noting that local business are willing to provide opportunities but the programmes require strong structure and Omani students need more training in professional skills.
Jisser was founded by members of the Oman State Alumni Community a group of alumni of cultural and educational exchange projects in the US.
Fatma al Kindi another founding member of Jisser said that the support provided by organisations such as the Oman American Business Council Amideast Oman and the Ministry of Higher Education has been outstanding.
Sarah Jackson country director of Amideast Oman said that Jisser has played a key role in 'facilitating the internship process and expanding opportunities for Omanis to gain valuable work experience'.
Amideast Oman has acted as an incubator for the Jisser idea providing advice on the development of the project and the infrastructure necessary for hosting workshops. Kulthoom said 'Amideast's experience in expanding opportunities for Omanis through education and training was crucial to the Jisser project.'
Speaking about Jisser's future plans Kulthoom said 'We hope to expand the number of students and companies. In particular we would like to encourage more SMEs to get involved. Currently there are over 50 companies who have signed up with the Jisser internship platform.'
BP Oman held an engagement forum earlier this week hosted by the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI) in Nizwa to share its social investment programme with the community in Dakhliyah.
BP Oman will be targeting education projects focusing on professional assistance and employment opportunities for young people in the sultanate. Dave Campbell general manager of BP Oman said that the OCCI engagement forum focused on building local capabilities.
The social investment strategy will focus on supporting the work of Injaz Oman in empowering Omani youth with employment skills he said.
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