This latest installment of the program, and the third in Ethiopia, is based out of Mekelle at the Don Bosco Poly Technic College, which operates under the Technical Vocational Education and Training Center (TVET). IVECO will provide the institution and its professors with the practical equipment, tools and training to offer a certified course that will qualify young trainees for a future career in the automotive sector.
Supporting local communities around the world is one of the core areas through which CNH Industrial approaches sustainability. One example of this approach is the TechPro2 technical youth training program, which first launched globally within CNH Industrial in 2011. It fosters the professional and social development of young people by providing them with advanced technical training to give them the skills and tools they will need for a bright future.
Together with its program partner, Fondazione Opera Don Bosco, a non-profit organization based in Milan, Italy, the Company hosted the opening of a new program on May 30 at the Don Bosco Poly Technic College. in Mekelle, Ethiopia. The event saw representatives from CNH Industrial, its commercial vehicles brand IVECO and the Salesians of Don Bosco welcome members of local government, media and students to the inauguration of this important educational initiative for the community.
CNH Industrial will provide equipment and knowhow in a donation to the school that includes a heavy-duty truck, which is commercialized for Africa as well as other markets. This donation ensures that the students will have a 360-degree learning experience with the opportunity to work with the engine, manual transmission, gearbox and other components. Didactic materials are also being provided, together with support from IVECO whose expert staff will provide teachers from the College with the necessary training to conduct the course.
Upon successful course completion, with a duration of one year, the first group of close to a dozen students will receive a specialized certification in vehicle maintenance. Furthermore, CNH Industrial and IVECO will provide the qualifying students with internship opportunities within the IVECO dealer network in Ethiopia, where they will gain valuable on-the-job experience and the opportunity to seek direct employment.
“For us at CNH Industrial, every edition of TechPro2 represents an important experience, one that goes beyond financial contribution and the transfer of know-how. They allow us the unique opportunity to see students grow both professionally and into mature young adults. The enthusiasm transmitted by the students is of inestimable value and we are truly honored to contribute to this,” said Daniela Ropolo, Head of Sustainable Development Initiatives for Europe, Middle East, Africa & Asia.
“We are thrilled that CNH Industrial and its IVECO brand have taken this important project to heart. The TVET in Mekelle is a strategic training center for us and we can confirm that with IVECO, and the efforts of many other stakeholders, we have given life to a great project that I am sure, will be of great value for many young students who require adequate training to build a future for themselves, their families and for the country,” said Don Giuliano Giacomazzi, Supervisor of the Salesians of Lombardy and Emilia Romagna and a member of the Council of Fondazione Opera Don Bosco.
This is the third TechPro2 site in Ethiopia for CNH Industrial and the latest of many training courses that Fondazione Opera Don Bosco has brought to fruition in Ethiopia through its support of socio-educational projects that help young people and children living in the poorest areas of the world. The two previously-established TechPro2 programs, dedicated to agricultural equipment and commercial vehicles, are based in Addis Ababa at Bosco Children P.R.P.S.C. (Preventive and Rehabilitative Program for Street Children).
CNH Industrial is present in Ethiopia with IVECO AMCE (Automotive Manufacturing Company of Ethiopia) a joint-venture between IVECO and the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, which was established in 1975. This local product assembly plant is based in Addis Ababa and employs some 200 people.
