Standard Chartered, UCEP to reskill Covid-hit workforce

Standard Chartered Bank and UCEP Bangladesh have jointly relaunched the second phase of the reskilling and employment reintegration programme for economically vulnerable people who have lost their livelihoods due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It will build on the success of the first phase, through which around 300 trainees from Rajshahi and Rangpur have found meaningful employment after reskilling training. According to a press release, the second phase will reskill 500 people from Rajshahi and Khulna. 

UCEP Bangladesh is conducting a rapid needs assessment to identify the skill gaps in the formal and informal sectors and the opportunities created by the disruptions caused by the pandemic.

Demand-driven training programmes will be developed based on the study’s findings that will prepare participants with the skills to best meet the current and future demands of the job market. The graduates will then go through a job placement programme to complete their reintegration within the economy. 

Naser Ezaz Bijoy, CEO of Standard Chartered Bangladesh, said the pandemic disproportionately impacts the economically vulnerable, for whom there is no distinction between life and livelihood.

“… The second edition of reskilling and reintegration programme … is in addition to the recently launched similar initiative that supports returnee migrant workers. The challenge in front of us is mammoth, which is why we are sharing our tried and tested interventions as widely as possible so that other socially responsible organisations can build on them and be a force for good by standing next to the communities in need,” he said.

Md Abdul Karim, executive director of UCEP Bangladesh, thanked Standard Chartered Bank for their support in the programme’s second phase. He also expressed the UCEP’s commitment to equipping the young adults as a “productive and progressive workforce” to better contribute to the country’s economic growth.

He emphasised the value of the expanded partnership with Standard Chartered Bank to help young people who lost jobs and their families through reskilling and reintegration in the skill sector.

The bank’s commitment to supporting Bangladesh’s continued journey of prosperity even in the face of the Covid-19 challenge saw the bank secure 25 major international awards in the past year. The bank was also recognised as the international bank with the highest CSR spends in 2020 by Bangladesh Bank. For 2021, Standard Chartered Bangladesh has announced a Tk 135 million strategic Covid-19 response action plan that supports healthcare and immediate assistance, regenerate livelihood and catalyse long-term growth.